What was lost will be found
by spiderwriters
Summary: AU. Link was trying to find the Ghost Ship to save Tetra, and get answers about his missing father. Linebeck was trying to find the Ghost Ship for treasure and a way back home. In spite of himself, Linebeck forms a fatherly relationship to the young hero as they go on their quest. Maybe what they were looking for won't be to hard to find after all. No slash. Minor LinebeckxJolene
1. Introductions are in order

**So this is my first Zelda story. Some of the story elements will come from the manga as well as the the game. If you guys want to see something in this story, tell me and I will try to incorporate it into the story.**

Link stared out at the foggy sea, his green eyes darting for any sign of the fabled Ghost Ship. He knew Tetra was hunting it down to put an end to it's madness, and the crew wanted their hands on the treasure. But for the young boy, he was looking for something else, something more personal, he wanted answers.

Link didn't really remember his parents. Because Link was so young when his parents left his life, they were always a blur in his memory. It seemed as though anytime he tried to remember his mother or father, all he could see was his sister. He was always told that both his sister and him looked like his mother, which was something, but neither of them really had any physical traits from their father. The only thing Link seemed to have inherited from his father was his eyes, a knack for getting himself into trouble and his smile, at least according to his grandma. Maybe that's why his grandmother wouldn't tell him about his father. But his grandmother would talk for day's about his mother's contagious smile and how his sister's smile was just like it. He didn't want to admit it, but some part of him wished he could remember his mother's smile, not the smile his sister had. Link wanted to be able to remember the man that his mother fell in love with.

He would give anything to be able to find his missing father. His mother had fallen ill about a year after his little sister was born. His father was a sailor and was often gone on long voyages. After his mother passed away, he remembered his father stayed back for a while before going on one more voyage. But the ship and its crew went missing, never to be seen again. He desperately wanted to know what happened to the ship. Until he heard of the Ghost Ship, he always thought that the ship his father was on sank during a storm. Now he had hope. Maybe his father was on that ship, or they might have some answers to give him some closure. As the fog grew thicker, his heart beat faster in hopeful anticipation. The silhouette of a large and eerie ship grew into focus with every passing second. His eyes looked around for any signs of a crew, but didn't see a single person. Finally, as the ship was close enough to board, Link's chest grew tight with a mix of emotions.

Tetra jumped aboard the Ghost Ship without a single thought. Link, eager for answers, went to jump aboard after her. In that instant everything went wrong. Time seemed to slow down. The ghost ship started to disappear with Tetra on board. He grabbed a hold of the side of the ship, but his fingers slipped, causing the young hero to take a dive into the foggy waters below.

* * *

Linebeck stared up at the temple of the Sea King with a look of determination. He had heard that in its cursed depths, was a great treasure, and Linebeck wanted it. Green eyes gazed over at the skeletons lining the walkway. The air was stale and held a slight stench of death and decay. He gulped as he forced his shaky legs to keep moving. He had to do this; he needed to find the secrets of the temple, one way, or another.

The sailor walked through the archway into the temple and instantly noticed the strange floor. It seemed to glow and change, but in such a way that it almost looked like a trick of the light. Interesting. He stared quizzically at them for a moment before shrugging and looking at the pots beside him. Inside there were little gems in the shape of a heart. Never had he seen such perplexing treasures in all his time sailing. He pulled on out and inspected it. It faintly glowed bright red and seemed to radiate life, as weird as it sounded. He set it back down in the pot he had found it in. He'd come back for it later, better to save room in his pockets for all the rumored treasurer in the temple.

The instant he stepped off of the strange tile, and took a few steps out into the open he felt something strange. Immediately, he felt like he had gotten punched by a drunk burly sailor. Linebeck new that feeling from multiple lost bar fights. The sailor started to feel achy and began to feel utterly exhausted. This had to be the curse the locals were talking about. A thought popped into his head as he remembered something.

He stepped back onto the strangely colored tile. and the feeling stopped. That weird tile had to be a safe haven of some sort. Green eyes scanned the room for more of the strange tile. Conveniently, there was a patch of tile right in front if him. But he still felt really winded and didn't want to make a run for it. Then he remembered something. Out of curiosity, Linebeck grabbed the heart gem from the pot beside him. It began to glow brighter, and dissolved into his hand. Linebeck couldn't be sure if he was seeing things, but it appeared as though he himself had also turned red for a moment. Either way, he felt his strength return to him. What a peculiar little gem. He might need a few of these to reach the bottom of the temple. Reaching into the pots he pulled out a few heart gems and stuffed them into his pockets.

This would be a piece of cake now. Smiling, he dashed forward. A second later he was once again the the safe haven of the cursed temple. Well, that was one step down, now to find another set of strange section of floor. While he saw a few more spots of glowing floor, he also noticed a key on ground in front of him. Without thinking, he picked it up. Instantly spikes appeared on the ground in front and behind him, blocking off any chance of leaving the temple. Great, just what he needed, booby-traps. Of all the rotten luck.

His green eyes darted around looking for a switch that would possibly deactivate the trap. He found one, but it was way out of reach. Maybe he could chuck a stone heart at it. Giving it his best shot he reeled back the stone and flung it towards the orb like switch at the corner of the room. Unfortunately, it was about twelve feet short. He grabbed out another gem and tried again. This time it went a whole three inches closer. The trapped man sighed and grabbed out the last gem, his last chance of getting out of this place. He prayed to the Goddesses that it would hit the switch. His prayers were not answered as the third gem fell closer to him than the previous two heart gems. Why did the universe feel the need to mock him? Linebeck slid to the ground in utter defeat. How could he be so reckless? It wouldn't be too much longer and he'd be another skeleton in this cursed place.

Linebeck sat there for over an hour with nothing but his thoughts to entertain him. He reached for the chain around his neck and looked at the gold ring on it. He ran his finger around it carefully, a small smile appeared on his face. That ring was the only thing he had to comfort him, which was a sad fact for a multitude of reasons. The longer he looked at the ring, the more memories it stirred up. Some memories were good, others... he wished he could forget. But the painful memories always made the pleasant ones all the more valuable to the sailor.

"Well, it looked like we'll be together again soon enough." Linebeck said to the ring, his voice sounding bittersweet.

He let out a sigh and wondered how much longer he'd last in this place. Sounds from the other room snapped him out of his moping. Linebeck jerked his head up. He leaned against the spikes to listen better. It sounded like voices. Hopefully they weren't the voices of the poor souls trapped in here with him. Although, he'd have someone or something to keep him company until he wasted away if that were the case. Seconds passed and the voices grew louder and more clear. Maybe if he could get their attention, they could help him out of this mess.

"Oi!" He shouted, silently praying someone heard him.

No response came from the other room. He listened again, hoping he wasn't just hearing things. Linebeck didn't think he could handle the universe mocking him again, at least, not like this. This time it was unmistakable, he heard two distinct voices: one sounding like a young boy and one like a girl.

He tried again to get the attention of this possible saviors and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Oi!"

This time he heard footsteps run towards him. A moment later a boy in dressed in green and a fairy rushed through the gateway. Linebeck sighed with relief. It looks like he found his ticket out of this place. At the very least they would be able to run for help.

"You came at just the right time. I triggered a trap and now I'm stuck." the sailor said trying to hold on to the last of his dignity.

The boy looked at him skeptically as he asked, "Are you Linebeck?"

"The one and only. Let me guess, you want an autograph." Linebeck smiled.

"We came here because we heard you knew about the Ghost Ship." The boy replied.

Linebeck leaned back against the spikes as he spoke, "I know about the Ghost Ship alright. And I also know that there is a treasure in here that will help you find the Ghost Ship."

"Really?" He could see the kid's green eyes grow wide with excitement.

The boys interest visibly grew and Linebeck was going to use that to his advantage. The young boy would probably do anything to learn more about the ship and could definitely aid his quest for riches. Who knows, maybe he could convince him to run through the temple for him and cut himself in on the profits. After all, he would be giving the boy valuable information, and information doesn't come free.

"I'll tell you how to find it if you help me get out of this trap." The sailor said cutting a deal.

The treasure hunter really hoped the kid would take it. Linebeck would certainly be out of luck if the boy refused. Fortunately for him, it seemed as though the boy might take his offer. He smiled to himself as the boy practically jumped out of his boots as he agreed to the deal. This was going perfectly for the treasure hunter. The poor kid had no idea what he was getting himself into. At the very least, he would be a treasure dog and nothing more. Come to think about it, he could use some help on his ship. The more hands he had, the more treasure they could bring back. He'd have to offer him a place on his crew once he got him out of this place.

Linebeck instructed the boy on the best route for him to take to turn off these switch. Before the boy could haphazardly run through the cursed temple, he also informed him of the peculiar gems in the pot; and told him of their abilities to alleviate the symptoms of the curse. The kid darted from safe spot to safe spot as fast as his little legs could carry him. After the spikes dropped Linebeck stood up stretching his legs. He was finally free. One more thing to do before he'd be free from this cursed place forever, he tossed the key he found to the kid. The sailor managed to convince the boy to do the exploring while he waited outside, stating that he would need all the gems for himself, and if he went there would be less gems to heal himself. Linebeck smiled to himself. This looked like the start of a wonderful relationship, of which Linebeck was sure he'd get the better end.

 **Sorry this chapter was mostly a retelling of what already happens. Things will start to change from the main story the further we get into it. I wanted to introduce the two characters to each other in this chapter. Don't worry the fatherly Linebeck will show up soon enough.**


	2. Ship Shape

Linebeck was busy looking over his ship to make sure it had all the supplies needed for the upcoming voyage. Somehow the kid found a sea chart in the cursed temple, and it could help them on their journey to find the Ghost Ship, and of course, its treasure. But the island on the map was quite a far way off and he had a few more things to stock up on before they set off. The boy, whatever his name was, took off, saying he needed to do a few things before they could leave for the Isle of Ember. Linebeck wondered where the kid went off to, not that he cared anyway. But still the kid had been gone for a while and he'd need his help with the extra supplies. The sound small feet running up the dock made the sailor look up from his list. The kid and fairy were leaning on the railing of his ship as they caught their breath.

"I'm ready to go if you are. I got all the stuff I need, I think." The kid said between heavy breaths.

The sailor looked the young hero and noticed that all he had was a shield and sword and asked, "Where's the rest of your stuff? Surely you're taking more stuff than that."

The kid looked down at his stuff with a confused expression, "What do you mean? This is all I have. I washed up on shore this morning with nothing. It's not like I had a lot on me in the first place."

Linebeck sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. It looked like they were going to need to get more supplies than he thought. At least he had a few extra rupees stashed away for an emergency. That treasure better be worth it, otherwise this would be time wasted for nothing.

"Well, let me get my list of stuff finished up and we'll go get stuff for the ship and stuff for you." the older man sighed.

The fairy chirped in sarcastically, "Wow. Looks like mister cheapskate isn't as stingy as they say he is. He really does have a heart."

"Wha- n-no!" Linebeck retorted quickly as he swatted at the fairy, "I just know what without adequate supplies members of the crew are more upset. They are more likely to keep more treasure back for themselves as opposed to splitting all the profits with their captain, and commit mutiny."

Linebeck straightened up his jacket in an attempt to make himself seem more professional and superior. He didn't need people thinking he was a soft captain. That would ruin the reputation he worked so hard to achieve. He had to make it seemed as though he ruled with an iron fist. Linebeck knew that the kid wouldn't be much trouble if he put up a fight. He could take him on with on hand behind his back. The kid would be more likely to be a nuance to him than to commit mutiny. But none the less, the kid needed clothes and other supplies and supplies would keep the kid from annoying him to death on the voyage.

The treasure hunting captain went below deck to make sure he hadn't overlooked anything. Once he had finished up his list, he started thinking about what a boy with practically nothing would need. What did kids his age need anyways? Well, a change of clothes to start, maybe some treasure hunting supplies. He walked back up to the deck, and pulled the boy and fairy from their thoughts, "Come on kid, let's get the stuff we need. The sooner we get our supplies, the sooner we leave. And the sooner we leave, to sooner we get to Ember island. The sooner we do that the sooner I get my hands on that sweet treasure."

"My name's not kid you know." The kid said as he crossed his arms. "My name's Link."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever kid." Linebeck waved dismissively at the boy, "I really don't care. We need to get shopping before it gets too late."

Link let out a small huff of annoyance and crossed his arms. Linebeck rolled his eyes as they walked into the town. Maybe this kid would be more trouble than he was going to be worth. It was too late to back out now, he needed the treasure dog to do the running around for him. And Linebeck definitely did not want to run through that Temple of the Sea King again. Besides, why get attached to the kid? There was no point. As soon as the kid saved his friend, they were done. The would go off on the separate ways. The kid would go sailing with his girlfriend, and he would hopefully be sailing back home with a bunch of treasure.

* * *

It had started to get late by the time they got the supplies for the ship onto the boat. Thankfully, they didn't need to get too many supplies for the ship, as it was going to be a short journey. They set everything down below in the cargo hold and placed everything to Linebeck's specifications, a captain had to keep a ship ship shape after all. Once that was finished, Linebeck showed the boy to his quarters.

Inside the small room sat a bed against the left wall. It was a small bed, but it would do for a kid that small. Beside it stood a little wood dresser with a small window above it. Against the right wall, there was a small desk and chair. The room wasn't the biggest, but it was certainly big enough to house the small boy comfortably.

"It's not much, but it's something. I expect you to keep it straightened up. I want everything on my ship to be ship shape. Understand?" Linebeck asked.

The kid nodded, which was enough for the captain, and they set off for town to pick up supplies for Link. They walked around the town gathering supplies. The kid needed something to sharpen his sword along the way. A dull sword was a useless sword. And a useless sword wasn't going to get them an treasure. The boy also could use a bag. Where else would he put his treasures? Finally they came to the last store on Linebeck's list: the clothing store.

The moment they walked into the store the woman behind the counter rushed over to the boy. The shopkeeper at the clothing store went on and on about _how cuuuute_ Link was, much to the kid's obvious dismay. She fussed over every outfit trying to find things to _bring out the color in his eyes_. Linebeck would have repeatedly rolled his eyes nonstop if Link's reactions to being fussed over, if they wasn't so funny. He clearly wasn't used to being fussed over, by his constant scowling. The kid glared at Linebeck every time he snickered at the poor boy. He couldn't help it; especially since she insisted the boy show off every outfit she picked out, just to make sure it fit him correctly or went with his eyes. By the end of it all they had racked up a decent rupee. Just the entertainment factor was enough for Linebeck to agree to the price. He set his rupees down on the counter and turned to leave.

"Have fun with your son." The shopkeeper said with a smile as she put the rupees away.

The sailor's face grew red as the kid got payback for the laughter earlier. He couldn't believe it. How could anyone think that he was the kid's father? Where would she get such a crazy idea from? They certainly looked nothing alike. Linebeck really hoped that this wouldn't be a common occurrence. After all, a captain had to maintain his superiority in front of the public, and people thinking he was a doting father wouldn't help that.

Linebeck turned around flustered, "H-he's not- I-I mean he's not my kid." The sailor straightened himself up and tried to regain composure. "He's my crew member."

The woman chuckled as he face grew pink, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed. I saw the green eyes and just assumed."

"It's fine." Linebeck quickly replied as he left the building, still a little red.

The kid and fairy were standing outside waiting for him. The kid's face was trying to suppress a smile. As soon as Linebeck shut the door, the fairy and boy broke out in laughter. The boy was holding his sides he was laughing so hard.

"Thanks for taking us shopping _dad_." the kid snickered.

"Oh quiet kid. It's Captain Linebeck to you." the sailor snapped. "We have a lot to do to get ready for tomorrow if we're going to find the Ghost Ship and its treasure."

With that, Linebeck turned and headed for the ship, ignoring the gigglefest behind him. He really was rethinking this whole taking on a kid thing, but he had already invested too much into this. Oh well, maybe the kid would wined up finding him a whole bunch of treasure.

 **I'm sorry this chapter was short, I promise that the others will be longer.**


	3. Isle of Ember

It was starting to get late by the time they had gotten back to the ship. The captain sighed as his stomach grumbled; if he was hungry, surely the kid would be too. By the time they whipped up something to eat and eat it, it would probably be too late to get too far. Oh well, at least it would be better than staying in port all night. The captain walked downstairs to the small kitchen and grabbed out some bread and cheese. Sandwiches would have to do, he didn't really feel like being a chef tonight. He called the kid down to the kitchen to grab something to eat, the sooner they ate, the sooner they could get out on the open sea.

In life there were few things Linebeck loved more than the feeling of the sea breeze on his face, and considering those things weren't there right now, the sailor felt at peace. He absolutely loved the way his ship cut through the water. Waves splashed up around them, sending up a faint mist. The sailor looked down at the front of the deck and saw the kid gazing out at the sea with a huge smile on his face. He couldn't help but smile just a little more. But all good things must come to an end. It was getting late, and they had a long day tomorrow. The captain switched off the engine to the steam ship and lowered the anchor.

After sending the kid and the fairy, what was her name again- _Carla, Sara, Celia, Elsa- whatever, it didn't matter_ -to bed, Linebeck headed to his own quarters. He threw his jacket over his chair and sat down, propping his feet on his desk. He pulled out his chain and looked over his ring. Looking at it brought back memories of home. A pang worked its way into his chest. The sailor let out a small breath as he tried to relieve his emotional distress. What he would give to be able to find home again. The captain sighed as he thought of his many failed searches in finding his home island. He'd have been better off staying behind while the rest of the crew went aboard the Ghost Ship and wouldn't have been spirited away from the world and home he knew. But that was in the past and there was no changing it. Green eyes looked at the clock above the fireplace. It was late, and it was time for some shut eye.

* * *

Morning came too soon for Linebeck's liking, but there was a lot to do today. He stretched and changed out of his night clothes, his bones made a little song as they popped. The sailor threw on his blue jacket as he headed towards the kitchen. He walked over to the water bucket, grabbing a small kettle along his way. After filling it up he waited for the water to boil. He didn't notice himself nodding off until the scream of the kettle jolted him sailor blinked, clearing the sleepiness from his eyes. He poured the water into a filter and watched his coffee drip into the glass below. Linebeck didn't know how he'd ever be able to function in the morning without his coffee. It was a goddess send. Once he'd gotten his morning coffee out of the way he decided to wake up the kid.

"Time to wake up kid." Linebeck said as he knocked on the door.

He waited for a response but only heart faint grumbling coming from the other side of the door. Linebeck stood there for a moment feeling confused, was the kid up or was he doing the whole _five more minutes_ thing that kids seemed to love to do? The older man let out an annoyed huff and banged on the door a bit louder this time. Maybe the kid would finally get his butt out of bed.

He pressed his ear against the door and heard a muffled voice that sounded like " _Buuffle wangle mena_."

With a confused look on his face he opened the door. Linebeck almost burst out laughing at what he saw. The kid was sleeping halfway off the bed with his head almost touching the floor. One of his feet was propped up on the headboard, one arm dangling down by his head, the other arm was resting on his stomach. His sheets so twisted and wrapped around him they looked like a rope. There was no way that was comfortable. How the kid managed to get into a position like that in his sleep was beyond him. Sparkles was bumping into him in an attempt to wake the kid up. Smiling, Linebeck picked up the boy, sitting him upright on his bed.

Glazed green eyes stared at the older man as the kid said, "The coucos want the money."

With that, the kid laid back down and rolled over onto his side and went back to sleep. Both Linebeck and the fairy broke out in laughter as he shook the kid's shoulder. Hopefully he'd wake up this time.

The kid mumbled, "But I don't have enough money yet. The coucos will get me. I don't want them to get me."

"Come on kid wake up." The captain laughed at the kid's antics.

This resulted in the boy making an angry grunting noise as he rolled onto his stomach. While this was amusing, this had gone on long enough for Linebeck's tastes. If the kid wasn't going to wake up, he'd _make_ him get up. The kid lurched straight up and started flailing as Linebeck started to tickle his sides. His giggles filled the air in the cabin. He rolled and twisted while trying to escape the sailors grasp, giggling the entire time. His little feet were wildly kicking the open air and his tiny fingers were trying to pry Linebeck's fingers away. When the captain was sure the kid was awake enough, he stopped tickling him.

"What was that for?" The kid asked a bit taken aback, and out of breath by the tickle attack.

"Not paying the coucos their money. Now go get dressed." The captain said, suppressing a smile as he headed out the door.

The boy stared at him with a confused expression on his face. Linebeck shook his head trying to hide a small smile. He could hear the boy and the fairy talking as he headed up to the deck. He chuckled as he heard the fairy tell him he was sleep talking and the boy trying to deny it. That kid was definitely something else.

* * *

After only a few hours sailing they finally caught sight of the Isle of Ember. The kid ran below deck to grab his sword, shield, and maps as he docked the ship. The second the ship was docked the boy rushed his way towards the fortune teller's house. Linebeck shook his head at the kids tenaciousness as he followed behind. There was something about that kid's determined attitude that he couldn't quite put his finger on. When he caught up to the kid he noticed that the fortune teller was nowhere to be found. He followed link down stairs in his search for the fortune teller and found a large stone door. Hesitantly the sailor knocked on the door, not sure what to expect.

" _Hello travellers. I have been sealed I'm here for my protection. But now the time is passed and I may leave. However, the door must be unlocked from the outside."_ a muffled voice came from the other side of the door.

"Where's the key?" The kid asked as he looked around.

" _The way to open the door is connected to the map on the wall. There are three torches on the island. When you touch their locations on the map it should open the door._ " the voice said.

The kid grabbed Linebeck's jacket and pulled him towards the stairs, "Come on let's go find the torches. If we work together we"all find them in no time."

Reluctantly the captain followed the kid, not because the kid was right or anything, he just thought the odds of finding treasure would be greater if he went. He followed along finding a few lost rupees in the tall grass. The kid drug him all over the island looking for the stupid torches. After finally finding the last torch, Linebeck trudged back to the fortune teller's house. By the time he got there the fortune teller was sitting in her chair, her eyes glowing.

"I...Open my eyes... To the future... You will come to realize... What you truly seek... Has been in front of you... The whole time... I see sinister things approaching... Dark things consuming what you care for... Only a sacrifice... One out of love... Can unlock lost power... And bring brightness... That removes the dark forces..."

The lights in the room flickered for a moment as the fortune teller's eyes returned to normal. Linebeck looked at the kid and fairy quizzically, unsure what to think about the fortune.

* * *

Linebeck leaned over the side of his ship looking for the kid. Astrid, the fortune teller's name apparently, told the kid he needed to go into the temple to find what they needed to find the Ghost Ship and save the kid's little friend - _Tammy, Tiffany, Tetra, Tera, whatever, he did not care._ No matter how much the kid tried to talk him into it, Linebeck refused to go into another temple. One trip into an ancient temple was enough for a lifetime. Besides, he would never admit that temples always gave him the heebie jeebies.

The captain told the kid that he'd wait for him on that ship. The sailor was starting to get worried; the kid was taking too long. Linebeck almost considered going after him when he saw the boy and fairy walk out of the temple. He didn't want to admit it, but he'd probably never be able to forgive himself if something happened to the kid, not that the kid was growing on him or anything; he was just worried about the safety of his crew.


	4. Canon Island

**Hi guys. A special thanks to Moonlight Raven Grave for and thebasementdweller follows. Please tell me if you life the story, how I can make it better,or if you want to see something written into the story (if it can be worked in). The more reviews, the faster I will be inclined to write. Now on with the story.**

They had set out for Mercay Island, leaving the Isle of Ember. According to Astrid, they needed to find tow more spirits to locate the Ghost Ship. It was full steam ahead, as the sun was starting to dip close to the horizon. Linebeck stared out at the approaching sunset. He never got over how beautiful sunsets looked out at sea. They reminded him of a better time. A time when things were simple and everything felt right with the world. The silhouette of the island was growing larger as the sky changed to a deep orange red.

The sun finally dipped below the horizon as they docked, leaving the sky a beautiful purple that faded into midnight blue. Linebeck rustled the kids hair as he walked by, setting foot on the docks. He tossed the kid a red rupee, telling him to stock up on any supplies the kid might need, and that he'd be in the tavern if he needed him.

The sailor walked into the tavern and ordered himself some "milk". Linebeck hadn't had a stiff drink in a long time and he couldn't remember why. He sat down at the most secluded part of the bar, wanting to keep to himself. Before he got halfway through his through his drink he heard a familiar voice. Linebeck groaned as recognized the voice. It was one of his old shipmates that he really didn't care for. Why on the Goddesses' green earth did Markus have to show up at this tavern, of all places? Maybe if he stared straight ahead, he'd leave him alone. But alas, this didn't happen as a moment later the pirate caught sight of him and walked over. Linebeck rolled his eyes and cursed his misfortune.

"Hey, it's Ol' Linebeck," a burly pirate said as he "lightly" punched his shoulder.

Linebeck rubbed his shoulder, giving the pirate a look to tell him to shut up.

This look was ignored as he continued speaking, "So I hear Jolene is gunning for ya. What did ya to to make her so mad?"

"I don't know." The sailor grumbled before taking another sip of his drink, obviously not caring what the pirate had to say.

It took a second to register in his mind who exactly was looking for him. He almost choked on his milk as he turned towards his old crew mate in shock.

"Wait! Jolene! Why is she mad at me?" Linebeck looked around real quick in panic trying to find the crazy she pirate.

The other sailor laughed, "Nah, she ain't here. I left her ship about a week ago though. Been on a break ya see..."

Linebeck began to tune his old crew mate out, nodding at somewhat appropriate times. He hoped that he would just leave him alone. Was wanting a little piece and quiet too much? Eventually the pirate grew bored with the one sided conversation and stood up.

"Heh heh. Well good luck to ya. Hope Jolene lets you get out alive if she ever gets ya." The pirate laughed as he slapped Linebeck on his back, causing him to almost choke on his drink.

Linebeck let out a small grunt in agreement. Needless to say, this news just ruined his night. He gulped down the last bit of his drink. The sailor looked at his empty glass with a bit of disappointment, and sat there for a moment wondering if this bad news should mean another drink to forget about his problems or stay mostly sober in the event of Jolene finding him. He weighed the odds in his head and went with the first option. One more drink wouldn't kill him.

* * *

It was far later in the day than he liked when he woke up. He let out a groan as his head started pounding. He knew he should have stopped after the second glass. Oh well, if one thing was for certain, he was going to need a strong glass of coffee to help him function today. Goddesses, did Linebeck hate hangovers. Maybe that's why he hadn't gone drinking in so long. His head was definitely going to be pounding for the better part of today.

After one super strong cup of coffee, the captain was ready for the day. His pounding headache was starting to subside now that he had caffeine running through his veins. He walked up in deck and saw the kid running towards him with a map at hand. Great, they were one step closer to finding the Ghost Ship and its treasure. Linebeck tussled the kids hair as he grabbed the sea chart from the kid. He frowned, looking at the map. They'd have a lot of water to cover, and that meant greater chances of Joline finding them. Linebeck remembered that Joline had torpedoes installed on her ship and shuddered at the thought of what it would do to his precious ship. But none the less, they needed to venture out into the open sea.

"Alright kid, I got news that an old crew mate's not the happiest with me, and we need to be on the lookout for her." Linebeck informed the kid as he handed him a telescope.

The kid raised an eyebrow, "What did you do?"

"I dunno. I'll never understand women." Linebeck shrugged as he moved his ship out of the harbor, "But what I do know is that we need to make a stop at Canon Island and outfit my ship with a canon. I'm not risking the chance on open waters and having my baby hurt."

The fairy and kid snickered at his terminology. Linebeck glared at them and rolled his eyes. He had a feeling that this was going to be a long trip.

* * *

After a two day long journey that kept Linebeck on constant edge. Everything on the horizon made his heart skip a beat until he realized that it wasn't Jolene out to get him. His nerves didn't calm down until they had Canon Island in their sights. The captain let out a sigh of relief as he pulled his ship up to the dock. As soon as they docked the kid took off for Eddo's office. Linebeck yelled at the kid to wait but he was too far gone to hear him. He shook his head and went into his captain's quarters grabbing a couple of rupees. The captain made his way over to the office looking for the kid.

Noticing the lack of any kids, Linebeck got the apprentice's attention, "Hey Fuzo, you see a kid around here? He's yay tall," Linebeck said holding his hand out in front of him about chest level, "wearing a green shirt and hat, had a fairy with him too."

"Yeah, you just missed him. He ran around the island to get in the back way. I didn't know that he was with you Linebeck or I would have let him in this way." Fuzo replied.

The older sailor sighed, "Eh, it's fine. Not much we can do about it now. But anyways I need to talk to Eddo. I need to get a cannon for my ship."

"Well, that much I can do. Wait here, I'll talk to Eddo and get you set up." Fuzo responded.

Fuzo opened the door and went in the other room to grab the inventor. After a bit of bartering, Linebeck managed to talk the price down to 50 rupees. Once that was settled, Fuzo grabbed his supplies and headed out to install the canon. Linebeck started talking to Eddo, asking his the usual questions: how he was doing, was business, was he working on any new projects at the moment? The inventor was just starting to talk about his salvage arm project when the kid and fairy walked through the door.

"What! How did you get in here?" the kid asked completely shocked.

Linebeck instantly retorted, "I told you to wait for me, but did you listen to me? _Nooooo_. _You just had to run ahead. Don't listen to your captain or anything. It's not like he knows the owner or anything_."

He stopped his sarcastic rant and let out a low whistle when he saw all the bee stings on the kid. The kid was _covered_ in bee stings, and that probably hurt a lot. Linebeck sighed and told the kid to follow him back to the ship. He nodded at Fuzo as they passed him on the way to his office. The kid hesitantly followed him in, he'd never been in his quarters before. He told the kid to sit down in a chair as he poured some red potion into a small glass.

"Here drink this, this will help take care of the pain and prevent any infection. Captain's orders." The captain said with a small smile on his face.

"Aw look Link, he really does care," the fairy said in mawkish voice.

Linebeck got flustered, "Wh-what! No! I'm just making sure my crew is ship shape. After all, he is my treasure dog and I can't have him hurt. I'd miss out on a lot of treasure."

The kid smiled at his antics. No matter how hard he tried, the captain couldn't hide his soft spot. Not that having a soft spot was bad or anything. It didn't make him any less of a captain.

* * *

They had set sail again, only getting a few hours away from Canon Island before the sun dipped below the horizon. It would be harder to spot Jolene if she was near, but that also meant that she'd have a hard time seeing them in the darkness to. With that thought in mind the pressed on a little bit longer in the cover of night. As much as he wanted to continue sailing and making good time, Linebeck was beat, and the kid could barely keep his eyes open. The instant he hit the bed, Linebeck was out like me a light, until he was awoken up by the sound if pounding on his door and the kid's terrified screams.


	5. Fog

Linebeck's blood ran cold at the sound of the kid's screams of absolute terror. The sailor sprang up in bed instantly. He was so caught up at the sound of his screams that the sailor didn't even notice the pounding on the door until a second later. He hoped to the goddesses that Joleen and her crew hadn't found them. His blood ran boiling hot at that thought. If they touched a single hair on that kid's head, there would be hell to pay. No one hurt his crew and got away with it. He grabbed a hidden dagger from underneath his desk and rushed for the door. He threw the door open, only to run face first into the fairy. He stumbled backwards, a bit surprised at who was at the door.

"Finally! You're up." the fairy sighed exasperated.

"What's going on Sparkles?" Linebeck asked his voice filled with panic, every moment fearing for the kid's life.

"Link's having some terrible nightmare and I can't wake him up." she explained.

Linebeck set his knife down on his desk. All of this was because of a simple bad dream? Kids. He'd be fine, kids had bad dreams, and they got over them. And that kid was resilient, a dream shouldn't shake him up too badly. Besides, by the time he got down there, the kid would be awake or his dream would have already changed. Why waste his time?

The sailor turned back to the fairy, crossed his arms, and let out an annoyed huff, "Is that all? I thought we had been boarded and being attacked. The kid will be fine. Bad dreams have to end eventually right? Besides you not being able to wake him up doesn't mean anything. He was having dreams about owing cuccos money and you couldn't wake him up."

"I don't think that this nightmare is like your average nightmare Linebeck." the fairy protested worriedly.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a long breath. Linebeck had a strong feeling that the fairy was not going to drop it until the kid woke up. The captain let out an annoyed sigh.

"Fine. I'll wake the kid up if it'll make you happy. " he huffed as he walked to the kid's room.

Linebeck stopped and pointed a finger at the fairy, "And it's _**Captain**_ Linebeck to you."

The kid's screams accompanied Linebeck and the fairy on their way to the boy's room. He opened the door to find that the fairy was right; this wasn't your average nightmare. The kid was madly tossing around in his bed like he was being attacked by some invisible intruder. He was gasping and screaming nonsense into his pillow. His little arms and legs were flailing like he was fighting something. Tears ran streaks down the kid's face. Linebeck rushed over to the kid and tried to shake him awake. The kid was absolutely soaked in sweat. This was a pretty bad dream.

"No. She has to get better." the kid mumbled with absolute fear in his voice.

Linebeck shook the kid harder, "Kid! Wake up!"

"Please don't leave again." the kid sobbed.

This certainly wasn't a nightmare about cuccos this time. He was whimpering in his sleep. The boy began thrashing even more, trying hard to get out of Linebeck's grasp. His sobs grew louder as he panicked even more. This was bad. This was really bad. Linebeck was pretty sure that tickling the kid awake wasn't a viable option at this point. He had not idea how he was going to pull this kid out of his nightmare. The kid was going to hurt himself in his delirious state if he kept this up. He needed to do something.

" **Link**!" Linebeck shouted in one more desperate attempt to wake the kid up.

Link let out one more panicked scream before jolting awake. He jolted forward and latched onto Linebeck. Sobs racked the kid's body. The surprised captain hesitantly rubbed the kid's back as he sobbed. Linebeck let out a small sigh, he was not expecting this when he woke up. They sat there on the bed like that for a while. Slowly the boy's sobs turned into hiccups. It wasn't too much longer before the kid slowly let his iron grip go. The poor kid was an absolute disaster. His hair and clothes clung to him like a castaway on a piece of driftwood. The boy's small body trembled and shook as he stared at the wall with a defeated look on his face. Linebeck looked at him with a worried expression, unsure if the kid was really out of it.

"Kid?" the captain asked quietly, "Are you alright?"

It was quiet between them. Link's hiccups filled the quite air. He wiped his face of with a sleeve, his eyes cast downwards.

"Yeah," the kid responded, his voice barley louder than a whisper. "It was just a bad dream."

Linebeck scoffed and rolled his eyes, "Pft, I'll say. You were freaking out. What were you dreaming about to cause a nightmare that badly?"

"I don't remember." The kid said quietly, his emerald eyes avoiding the sailor's

Linebeck didn't really believe that but, he dropped the subject, for the kid's sake. The kid had been through enough emotional stuff tonight. And him pressuring him on his recent nightmare was not going to help things.

"Well, try to get back to sleep, we've got a long day ahead." the sailor said as he stood up and walked out of the room.

* * *

Needless to say, the wake up call this morning was the least of Linebeck's worries. The route the were going to originally take to the northwest was blocked by a giant tornadoes, and Linebeck was not going to deal with that. So they had to backtrack to go around the blockade, only to get stuck in a bunch of fog. It was fog as far as the eye could see, but that wasn't saying much because Linebeck could barely make out the water below them. Out of the corner of his eye, the sailor caught a shadowy figure in the fog. The hair on the back of his neck began to prick up. It had to be the Ghost Ship. The sailor rushed over to the steering wheel and took off after the ship. And of course, as soon as they had the ship in their reach, it disappeared. It was just his luck. If that wasn't bad enough, they somehow managed to get themselves completely and utterly lost.

Now Linebeck and the kid were sitting on the deck playing a poker to pass the time. It wasn't much, but it was something to do. Unfortunately for the kid, Linebeck was winning. Reluctantly, the kid pushed his last rupee into the pot as he looked at his card. Sure the kid was alright at poker, but he really needed to work on his poker face. Did he see a flicker of a smile? No. It was probably nothing, probably. He looked at the kid skeptically. Was he bluffing? Eh, it didn't matter, his three of a kind would win. The a sailor's eyes narrowed as he slowly pushed a red rupee in the center to match the kid's bet. They stared at each other for a brief moment. He laid his cards down, with a smirk. He had the kid beat this time.

The kid looked at his cards and sighed, "Wow a three of a kind."

There. He had the kid, and he knew it. That look said it all. Boy was he good at calling bluffs or what? The poor kid never had a chance at tricking him. He did have more poker experience under his belt after all.

"You bet your rupees it is." Linebeck grinned as he went to reach for the pot.

Again the kid sighed, "I'm sorry Captain, but," he laid down his cards and a small smirk crept up on his lips, "my full house has your hand beat."

Linebeck's smile disappeared quickly being replaced with a frown. He should have seen it coming. His face grew bright red when he realized he had been played. Maybe the kid was better at poker than he initially thought. Oh well, at least they had killed some time. The captain looked up and noticed that the fog was disappearing. He stood up and stretched.

"Well that we perfect timing," the kid said as he grabbed his winnings.

"Yeah, I'll say. Go run that stuff to your room real quick. I still need you on look out." Linebeck replied as he went up to the steering wheel.

Linebeck frowned as he looked around. They were exactly where they were before they got caught up in the fog. That couldn't have been a coincidence, could it? Never the less, they needed to stop and restock up on supplies. The sailor turned the boat around and headed for Molida Island. When they finally docked the he told the kid to go ask the locals about the fog. He wanted to know if his suspicion about the fog was right and who better to ask than the locals. And maybe the kid might find enough treasure on the island to make up for his loss in poker.


	6. Uncharted Island

**A special thanks to SapphireBlueSea for followling. I'm sorry it's been a while between updates, I've been a little busy. I'm also coming up with some writer's block for some fluff later parts in the story, so if you guys have any ideas, let me know and I will try to fit it in.**

It took them a long while to navigate through the fog. It was really hard to see and they had to take it slow as not to hit anything. There was debris everywhere. It made the sailor uneasy thinking about how that debris wound up there. What pour souls were trapped in this endless fog? They also had to make sure to not go the wrong way and end up back where they had started. That was a another strange thing about this fog that didn't sit well with Linebeck. But with the kid's instructions, they finally made it through the dense fog.

Linebeck looked between the map and the horizon with a confused look on his face. Something wasn't adding up. That something was an island in sight that wasn't on the map. Maybe they'd find some treasure on the uncharted island. It was so strange setting foot on an uncharted island. It was something he had only done a handful of times, back when he was just a lowly cabin boy. The kid absolutely loved the idea of exploring the island. The kid's enthusiasm made Linebeck smile. He had to admit, the kid was ambitious and had spirit. Again, it struck a chord with Linebeck, and he could not for the life of him, place where the familiarity came from. The sailor stayed back to keep an eye on the ship and watched the kid on the deck to make sure he didn't get himself into trouble.

The kid ran into a cave towards the south end of the island. He had been in there for a while, and if he didn't come out soon, he was going to grab a dagger and go in after him. Just as he was about to jump off the ship, the kid ran out with a smile on his face. The kid had a slate with him. Apparently a frog king or something gave it to him. If he drew certain symbols on it, they would be transported to certain places. The kid had even managed to convince the frogs to show him some of the symbols. It wasn't what Linebeck would normally consider treasure, but it was definitely something useful.

* * *

They had been sailing for the Isle of Gust for quite some time when the sun dipped below the horizon. After they had stopped sailing for the night, the kid asked for supplies to update his sea chart and make a map of the uncharted island. There was a desk in his quarters by the fireplace that the kid could work at. Linebeck kicked back in a chair and began whittling. The fire crackled in the fireplace as they worked. As Linebeck went to get up to tend the fireplace, he rustled the kid's hair. The kid gave him an annoyed look and fixed his hair and went back to work on his map of the uncharted island. Huh, it looked just like a whale. He threw a few logs onto the fire and sat back down. Linebeck eventually grew bored of his whittling and looked up at the kid to see his progress, and chuckled to himself.

The kid was passed out on his desk. It had been a long day after all. He set down his supplies on his desk and got out of his chair. Linebeck gently picked up the sleeping kid out of his chair. He carried the kid down to his room. The sailor laid the kid down on his bed and pulled his boots. He set the kid's hat on the night stand. Linebeck pulled the covers over the kid and tucked him in. The kid mumbled something about having to feed a seagull a magic pear to make him fly. Linebeck had to suppress a laugh or risk waking the kid up. That kid and his crazy dreams. As he shut the door to the kid's room he was nearly scared out of his boots by the fairy.

"Aw. How sweet." the fairy laughed.

"Oh quiet you." Linebeck retorted. "I just want my crew to be well rested and he wasn't going to get a good night's sleep asleep on my desk."

"Just keep telling yourself that you don't care, but we both know you do." the fairy remarked before taking off.

"Pft. Fairy thinks she's a know it all." Linebeck muttered under his breath.

"I heard that." He heard the fairy say.

She was right, even if he didn't want to admit it. The kid was growing on him, even if the kid always seemed to be getting himself into trouble, or as he put it, trouble always found him. He laughed when the kid said that. That was something he always told his mother when he was younger. He saw quite a bit of himself in the kid. Come to think about it, the kid and him had quite a few similarities. For one they both had the same striking emerald eyes, but that was probably coincidence. Green was a common eye color, right? Also, whenever Link got nervous he would rub the back of his neck, which was something Linebeck always did. The kid would sometimes even have the same smirk he had. Weird, maybe he was rubbing off on the kid.

 **I'm sorry this chapter was so short, I might come back and add more to it later. The next chapter will be longer, I promise.**


	7. Boarded

**A special thanks to LinknotZelda for following. And a big thank you to Moonlight Raven Grave and Alanis Strife for the reviews.**

The past few days were absolutely perfect, aside from some light rain. It was a bit chilly, but it was nothing a little warm tea couldn't fix. The fact that things were going so well made Linebeck uneasy. They were too far out at sea for things to be going this well. If past experience meant anything, they were surely headed for trouble. It was either that, or trouble was headed for them.

The sailor was really surprised that they hadn't seen any other ships on their voyage. Normally this far out there would be a band of pirates, or at least a trader. But the captain hadn't seen anyone the past few days. Maybe he was worrying over nothing. It wasn't like there was anything interesting out here any way. But that never seemed to stop pirates.

Linebeck pushed his paranoid thoughts aside as they went below deck to get out of the rain and warm up. The sailor was going to get some tea ready. It was the perfect drink to warm up after a cold and wet day on the open seas. The sailor sent the kid to get to get changed out of his soaked clothes. He wouldn't want the kid getting sick hanging out in wet clothes. The sailor paused for a second when he thought he heard footsteps above him. Why was the kid on the deck? He had no reason to be up there. Linebeck just had his hand on the doorknob when he heard the kid's muffled scream on the other side of the door. His eyes grew wide as he heard the sound of distress.

Linebeck threw open the door. He saw three pirates in front of him, one was holding on to the squirming kid. One pirate turned to him in surprise and pulled out his sword. Linebeck grabbed the only weapon near him, a broomstick. Hey, at least it was something.

Over the course of many bar brawls, Linebeck learned a thing or two when it came to hand to hand fighting. Most of what he learned was because it was used on him, but hey, he learned something. And now it was time to put that knowledge to the test. The first pirate laughed at the captain's makeshift weapon and swung his sword at Linebeck. He deflected the sword's blow with the broom, but it now had a good chunk taken off of it. Linebeck reeled the stick and smacked the pirate over the head with it. The stick broke apart into splintery pieces and the pirate turned towards him with a very displeased look on his face.

The second pirate came rushing at the captain. Linebeck dodged the punch from the second pirate. The sailor took this distracted opportunity to hook his leg around the back of the first pirate and tripped him. He landed with a thud and smacked his head on the stairs. Linebeck turned towards the second pirate. The second pirate swung at Linebeck, who barley missed the punch. His heart was pounding a thousand miles a minute.

Linebeck held his fists in front of his face. The pirate swung at him again, but Linebeck stepped to the side and swung at his stomach. He managed to knock the pirate back into his buddy, causing him to trip. He stood back up and charged at the sailor. This time Linebeck wasn't so lucky. The pirate managed to land a hit to his side. Linebeck retaliated with his own punch. The pirate let out a curse as he got hit in the face.

"Hey. Watch your languages in front of the kid. He doesn't need to be talking like a sailor." Linebeck quipped as jabbed at the pirate's side.

"Watch this!" The pirate shouted as he went to punch the sailor.

Linebeck stepped to the side, narrowly avoiding the hit. He grabbed the pirate's arm with his right hand and grabbed his elbow with his left. The captain pushed in with his left hand and swung the pirate into the ground. The pirate smacked the ground and let out an audible cry of pain.

Linebeck stood up, turned to the other pirate, and said "Let the kid go. And get off my ship."

It all happened so fast. He barely had time to register everything that happened. He saw a smile grow on the pirate's face, the kid's eyes grow wide with fear, and the kid's desperate attempt to yell through the hand over his mouth. An instant later, Linebeck felt a sharp pain on the back of his head. He saw the wood floor of the ship as it rushed up to meet him before it all went black.

* * *

Linebeck's eyes opened up to darkness. The only sounds he could make out were the waves lapping against the side of the ship. Oh Goddess his head hurt. His head was pounding like a hammer at a forge. What the heck happened any way? He blinked a few times and shook his heavy head. Things were starting to trickle back into place. Then it all came back to him. In a panic the sailor stood up. Without hesitation, he took the stairs two at a time, desperate to reach the deck. He looked around and saw nothing for miles around. No ships, no nearby islands, nothing.

Linebeck looked down and noticed the kid's hat laying on the deck. In that instant it felt like a ton of bricks dropped on him. His chest tightened up and it felt like he couldn't breath. No. The kid had to be somewhere on this ship. They couldn't have taken him. No. They couldn't have. He had to be on his ship. He just had to be. Linebeck grabbed the hat and rushed downstairs. He threw open the kid's door, hoping to find him hiding in there. His hopes were dashed when he saw the empty room. Some small part of him hoped that the kid managed to get away and he was still hiding somewhere on the ship. He practically tore his ship apart looking for him. In utter defeat, he went back upstairs. Linebeck didn't know which way the pirate ship went, but one way or another, he was going to find Link.


	8. The search

**Thank you Moonlight Rave Grave for the review and PokemonTrainer4700 for the review and follow.**

The weight of the world was nothing compared to the feeling Linebeck had. He felt like the world was repeatedly slamming down on him. Every second that passed added another ton of worry to his shoulders. The further he went without seeing anything on the horizon, the more anxious he grew. His chest tightened with every breath he took. What if he was going the wrong way? Should he turn around and go back the way he came? Could he risk the chance of turning around only to miss the ship docked at the next island?

Needless to say, it had been a miserable two days for the captain. Two long and agonizing days full of searching for the kid. Finding Link had been the only thought running through the captain's mind. The desperate search was beginning to take it's toll. He couldn't eat. Linebeck didn't want to eat. The sailor had no appetite, just a horrible feeling in his stomach. He couldn't sleep. The captain didn't want to sleep. He didn't want to stop. He couldn't bring himself to stop. Linebeck wouldn't stop searching until he found Link. The thought of missing a chance to find the kid because he got tired or hungry kept him going. Linebeck would keep going until he collapsed or found the kid. And the sailor was hoping the latter would happen first.

Linebeck just felt so numb and empty. But he had to keep going. He just had to. The thoughts of what the pirates could be doing to Link made him frantic to find him. Linebeck would never be able to forgive himself if the pirates hurt him because he was too slow. If they hurt a single hair on his head, he would make each and every single one of those dirty good for nothing pirates pay. No one hurt his crew and got away with it. No one. No. No. Link was fine. The kid had to be fine, a little scared maybe, but fine. He was going to find Link and he was going to be okay. Link was going to be fine. He was a tough kid, tougher than he'd ever be.

That kid was strong and determined. He would put up a fight if the pirates tried to do something to him. But Link's courage also worried Linebeck. If he put up too much of a fight, they might hurt him. No. Link was going to be fine. Link was smart and he'd know what to do. The kid would play his cards right and stay out of trouble. If the kid could put up with his antics, he would put up with the pirates. Link would be fine. He had to be fine.

Linebeck was going to find Link. He was going to find him soon and get him back to his ship. They would be sailing together again in no time at all. It would be like old times. And Link would be safe. They were going to find the Ghost Ship and rescue his friend. And everything would be alright. He just had to find Link.

The sailor's weary eyes spotted something in the distance. He pulled out a telescope and looked through it. The sight of another ship on the horizon made his heart skip a beat. Adrenaline pumped through him, giving him a second wind. That had to be the ship Link was on. Every second that passed caused his heart to beat faster and faster. When he got close to the ship he felt his hopes drop to the bottom of the ocean.

It was only Beedle's merchant ship. But maybe he saw the ship Link was on go by. He had to have seen something. Linebeck stopped the ship and dropped anchor. He leaped aboard the ship and rushed inside. The merchant looked up at him with his usual smile.

Beedle spoke with his usual smile, "Oh, hello Linebeck. What catches your eye. Only one more purchase and you get a gold memb-"

Linebeck interrupted the merchant, "I'm sorry Beedle, but I'm not interested in buying anything right now. My ship was boarded by some pirates two days ago. They knocked me out and took Link." Linebeck hastily explained noticing the merchant's smile falter.

"The kid that's been running around with you? That's terrible." Beedle replied sounding shocked.

"Have you seen any pirate ships the past few days? I have no idea where to look." A distraught Linebeck asked.

"No. Unfortunately you're the only one I've seen this week." The merchant replied.

"Oh." Muttered Linebeck.

"Maybe you should ask the fortune teller on the Isle of Ember. She has to know something. She can see the future after all." The merchant offered.

Linebeck snapped his fingers. Why didn't he think of that. Astrid had to have some idea of where Link was at. She knew all and saw all, and was probably his only chance of finding Link.

"Thanks Beedle. I owe you one." Linebeck said as he took off for his ship.

The sailor sprinted back onto his ship. He rushed down stairs into the kids room and looked for his maps and slate. Bingo. Why didn't he think of this idea sooner? There was a whirlpool that would land him pretty close to to the Isle of Ember. The captain ran up on deck and drew the triangular shape on the black slate. The whirlpool engulfing his ship was certainly a strange sensation to say the least. And as quickly as it had appeared, it just as quickly vanished. Linebeck looked around and saw the isle dead ahead. He set sail as fast as he could get his ship to go.

In a few minutes the Isle of Ember was close enough for him to dock. Linebeck quickly docked his ship and took off for Astrid's home. The sailor ran into the door and was met face to face with the fortune teller. Her eyes were full if worry and concern. Oh no. He was too late.. He had failed.

"Fear not for the child at the moment." Astrid said reassuringly, "Link is safe, considering the circumstances. But you must rest."

"No. I'm not going to rest until I find him." A distraught Linebeck replied.

Astrid placed a hand reassuringly on the sailor's weary face as she spoke, "You need to rest. I can sea your search has taken its toll. You will need your strength to find him. I can assure you that if you keep up your search like you have been, you may not ever be able to find him. Take your rest here. Gain back your strength. Then I will tell you how to find the child."

As she spoke Linebeck could feel the repercussions of his two day search. His eyes grew heavy like the weight he felt in his chest. But Astrid's words sounded soothing and made the weight in his chest feel lighter. She led him over to a nearby bed and he felt himself drift off.

* * *

The sailor looked around. He found himself on a familiar island. Linebeck quickly realized that he was home. He rushed up to his house and threw the door open. His wife's mother was there, by the bed. She was dabbing her forehead with a cool washcloth. His wife looked at him. Her once beautiful brown eyes were weary and almost lifeless. He walked over and sat beside his wife. Carefully he brushed a strand of blonde hair from her face. She looked so weak. It tore him up seeing her like that. She used to be so strong, so determined. When she set her mind on something, no one could stop her. She was the most tenacious person he had ever met. But now...

His wife noticed her husband's concern and smiled weakly as she took his hand. Linebeck couldn't help but smile back as he felt tears well up in his eyes. Her sickness was so hard on the both of them. It tore him up inside just as much as it hurt her. He kissed her hand and she laid it over her heart, like they used to when they were younger.

"Please don't leave me. I can't do this without you." Linebeck quivering voice cried.

His wife looked up at him, still trying to smile, "I'll always be with you."

* * *

The sailor opened his eyes forgetting his dream. There was something about his dream that lingered in the back of his mind, like a missing piece to the puzzle. As he tried to reach for it, it slipped further away. Linebeck noticed the sunset through the window. He went to sleep around noon, no way did he sleep that long. Linebeck felt a guilty weight in his stomach. No it was just his stomach grumbling and protesting for food. His stomach would have to wait until he found Link.

"Oh no you don't. I told you I would tell you how to find the boy after you got your strength back. You haven't eaten in three days." Astrid scolded the sailor as if she had read his mind.

"It's only been two days." Linebeck replied as he stretched.

"No. You slept all day yesterday." The fortune teller remarked as she poured the sailor a bowl of stew.

Maybe he was more tired than he had initially thought. But that meant that the kid was with those horrible pirates a lot longer than he thought. Worry began to overcome the sailor. He knew that the kid was fine yesterday, but a lot could have changed since then.

"Do not worry. You need to eat." Astrid commanded as she forced the bowl into Linebeck's hands.

Linebeck took the bowl and took a bite. He didn't realize how hungry he was until he started eating. It had been a hard two- three days on Linebeck. But now he had a chance at finding the kid, just as soon as he finished eating. When she was satisfied with how much Linebeck had eaten she led him to the table with her crystal ball.

"Now that you have gained back your strength, I will tell you how to find your lost child." Astrid said as her eyes began to glow.


	9. Persuasion

**So I will be changing the rating to the story to T because this chapter gets kind of violent. Also, thank you to PokemonTrainer4700 for the review and fluteprincess95 for following. I really appreciate all the support you guys give me and my story.**

Linebeck set off as soon as Astrid told him how to find Link. Mercay Island was where Astrid told him to go. She said that he would find the pirates who took Link there. This time he wouldn't stop until he found Link.

Linebeck sailed his ship around the cliff side and took a life boat to shore. He quietly beached the tiny boat and snuck over to the docks. The sailor noticed a large boat waiting at the dock. It had to be the ship that took Link. Carefully, the captain snuck aboard the ship. His heart was pounding. He held on to Link's sword, ready for a fight. His hands slowly reached for the door that led below deck. Of course, the door to the ship had to be locked. Never the less, Linebeck knew exactly where to find this ship's crew.

Linebeck's green eyes narrowed as he walked towards the tavern. His heart was racing and beating like a drum. Hiding in the shadows of the tavern, Linebeck waited. He knew that one of the pirates was still inside the tavern. He just had to wait for him to come out and take him by surprise. The door to the tavern opened, casting a bright light and a long silhouette on the ground. A gruff voice laughed as the door shut behind him. Linebeck would recognize that laugh anywhere. It was the one who laughed at him for fighting with a broom.

The pirate trudged around the building right in front of Linebeck. Before the poor bloke realized what was going on, Linebeck reached out and grabbed him from behind. The pirate wound up kissing the side of the tavern as he was slammed into the building. Linebeck pulled his arm behind his back and twisted it. He let out a small yelp and fought the sailor's grasp. The pirate managed to break free and turned towards the captain. Before the pirate could swing a drunk punch, Linebeck whipped out Link's sword and brought it up by his throat.

"Remember me?" Linebeck asked, malice coating his voice.

"Heh heh. Yeah. I knocked you out from behind. You know you shouldn't turn your back on someone unless you know they're out cold." The pirate laughed.

This didn't amuse the sailor and he pressed the blade of the sword against his throat, but careful enough not to draw blood. The pirate tried to press himself further against the wall. Their eyes glared at eachother for a moment.

"Tell me where the kid is." Linebeck commanded as he shoved the guy harder into the wall.

The pirate looked Linebeck dead in the eye and chuckled. "Pft, he's long gone. Too much trouble. Walked the plank. You're gonna need a salvage arm to find hi-"

The pirate was interrupted by a punch to the face. Linebeck knew that what the pirate was saying wasn't true, but something inside him snapped. Just hearing the those words brought out his inner pappa wolf. No one threatened his crew like that. He went into a wild furry, throwing punch after punch.

Linebeck felt someone try to pry him off of the pirate. He retaliated by elbowing the person in the face. The sailor spun around and punched the second guy, instantly sending him to the ground, before going back to the pirate. He swung a swift kick to the guy's ribcage. The pirate let out a gasp as the wind was knocked out of him. He grabbed the pirate by his shirt, hoisted him up and threw another punch to the face.

Linebeck slammed the pirate into the wall again as he spoke, "Where. Is. The. Kid?"

The pirate glared at him. Linebeck's green eyes glared back waiting for his answer. Linebeck felt himself be yanked off of the pirate. A nice punch to the face met Linebeck. Seconds later he felt he wind get knocked out of him as he was slammed on his back into the ground. Pain erupted through him as the second pirate sent a swift kick to Linebeck's side. The sailor managed to catch his leg and wrap his arm behind his knee. The second guy flipped over, landing face first into the stone pathway. An instant later Linebeck jumped on top of the second guy and started a mad fury of blows to the guy's face.

"What did you do with the kid?" Linebeck asked with venom in his voice.

"Check the bottom of the ocean." The pirate wheezed out.

Absolute rage over took Linebeck as he grabbed the pirate. The captain reeled back for another hard punch. Adrenaline rushed through the sailor. Linebeck was only running on pure instinct. He then slammed the pirate down on the pathway over and over again. He barley registered the cries of pain coming from the pirate in his enraged state.

The door to the tavern slammed open, casting light onto the fight. Linebeck once again felt himself be pulled away from the pirate. But this time he was too worn out to really fight back. He stopped struggling when he noticed the bar keeper was the one holding him back.

"What's going on here?" The bar keep asked looking between the three battered men.

The pirates' only responses were groaning in pain. Linebeck's green eyes glared with intense levels of hatred at the pathetic pirates. The sailor spat out some blood and wiped his mouth. Silence and malice were the only things lingering in the air.

"I believe I can give you the answers you seek." A voice said from beyond the shadows.

Linebeck looked up and noticed the old man walking into the light of the tavern.


	10. Reunited

**Thank you to PokemonTrainer4700 for the review and Hill98125, Arison Nakaru, Cyborgandroid and the Bakapotato for following.**

Linebeck looked up as Oshus stepped into the light of the tavern. The barkeep turned towards the old man, wanting answers.

"You see those pirates kidnapped a member of Linebeck's crew. He has been searching for days. While I don't condone the use of violence, I do admire the lengths he would endure for the sake of his crew. I trust that you will take care of these poor fools." Oshus said to the bar keeper.

The bar keeper looked at the pirates with a look of disgust as he grabbed one of unconscious pirates, "You can count on me Oshus."

The old man turned to Linebeck, offering him a hand, "Now that that's taken care of. There is someone who wants to see you."

They walked in silence the whole way. The sailor fiddled with Link's sword on his belt. Every step they took took weight off of Linebeck's shoulders. As the second's passed, the emptiness in his stomach was replaced with butterflies. Was the kid alright? Had they hurt him? He was safe, and that's all that mattered right now. How far away was the old man's house anyway? It felt like they were never going to reach the house. Linebeck had to see the kid. The sailor had to make sure that Link was okay.

Linebeck saw the house, the windows filled with a warm light. Despite the protests his bruised ribs gave him, he sprinted for the hut. Throwing the door open he rushed inside looking for Link. The kid was sitting in a chair, talking to the fairy. Link looked up and a huge smile appeared on his face. His ribs may have ached, but that didn't stop Linebeck from enveloping the kid in a big hug.

"Thank Goddesses you're alright. They didn't hurt you did they?" Linebeck asked.

"No. They just had me cleaning the ship the entire time." Link replied as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Link noticed the darkening bruise on the sailor's face and pulled back from Linebeck, looking concerned, "But it looks like they hurt you."

Linebeck chuckled, "You should see _them_. They won't be messing with anyone anytime soon. No one messes with my crew and gets away with it. How did you manage to get away anyway?"

The fairy buzzed over by Linebeck, "When I realized we were on Mercay Island I rushed back and grabbed Grandpa. We went back to the ship and got Link."

The rest of the night was spent with everyone catching up. Link recanted how he spent every waking moment cleaning the ship and staying out of the pirate's way. The fairy talked about how cunning Link was and how he came up with the escape plan all by himself. He snuck the idea of them stopping at the island to go to the tavern and get a drink. He knew that once they were gone that Celia would be able to sneak out the window in Link's room and go for help.

Linebeck talked about how he searched all over the high seas looking for any signs of the ship. He then went on telling him how he ran into Beedle and went to talk to Astrid. Link was sitting on the edge of his seat when Linebeck described his epic fight with the pirates. That made Linebeck remember that he still had Link's sword and handed it back to him.

"Well I think we've had enough excitement for today. Perhaps it's time for us to get some much needed rest." The old man said looking at the time.

After the excitement of the storytelling, Link was trying his hardest to keep his eyes open. They said their goodbyes to Oshus as Linebeck corralled the kid and fairy out of the house. They walked in comfortable silence back toward the town. It seemed like ages before they reached the lifeboat. Everyone pulled inside and Linebeck shoved off, heading for the hidden boat.

After they had gotten aboard, Linebeck walked the half asleep child to his room. After he out the kid to sleep he left the room and let out a sigh of relief. The sailor grabbed the slate and walked up on deck. He made sure the lifeboat was secure t the ship before drawing the backwards n. Linebeck wanted to make sure they had a lot of distance between them and the pirates before he went to sleep.

The sailor walked into his room, now fully feeling the extent of his injuries. He peeled off his jacket and shirt, seeing a dark purple and green bruise run down his sailor felt along his ribs, checking for any broken bones. Fortunately, they were all still intact. Green eyes looked into the mirror and saw a nice bruise in the shape of his fist on his jaw.

Linebeck let out a small smile. Sure he hurt like hell, but his injuries were definitely worth the price. The kid was back. Link was safe. They were together again. That's all that really mattered. And for right now, all was right with the world.

* * *

Linebeck awoke the next morning before the sun rose. Pink tints painted the sky by the horizon, signaling the impending sunrise. The sailor got up and stretched. He groggily walked down to the kitchen to get his coffee started. Oh how he had missed his coffee. Once it was ready, the sailor made his way back up to the deck. He sipped his coffee while watching the sunrise.

He remembered watching sunrises like this with his wife. They would climb the cliff side by their home and stare off into the ocean waiting for the sun to come up. They would sit at the top of the cliff hand in hand, never wanting to let go of each other. Linebeck smiled to himself. Those were the memories he enjoyed looking back on.

The sound of the door opening behind him brought Linebeck out of his thoughts. He expected it to be Link, but it was the fairy. She rushed over to him.

"More bad dreams?" Linebeck mused.

"Yeah. I don't know what's gotten into him." The fairy replied.

The duo walked inside, headed to Link's room. Linebeck could faintly hear the kid toss and mutter from behind the door. Slowly, the sailor opened the door and expected to see what he saw last time. He was right. Link was violently thrashing in his bed. Tears ran down his face and onto his pillow as he yelled into it.

"Linebeck. Help." Link sobbed.

When he heard that, something in Linebeck broke. There was a lot that ran through his mind in that instant. He couldn't believe what he heard. Instinct overpowered him and the sailor walked over and gently shook Link. The boy jerked away and turned away.

"Please let me go." the boy cried.

"Link." Linebeck said as he shook the boy again "I'm right here. It's just a bad dream."

Link's emerald eyes opened. He clung to the sailor a second later. Linebeck sat down next to Link, grabbed the boy, and pulled him into a hug. They sat there for a while while he waited for the kid to become coherent again. A few minutes later, Link was back to normal, forgetting his dream.

* * *

Linebeck walked out on deck with the kid following behind him. His green eyes were on the look out for anything on the open seas. Nothing was in sight, and it was just what the sailor wanted. He turned facing Link.

"Do you know how to fight Link?" Linebeck asked.

Link looked at him with a confused expression, "Of course I know how to fight. You've seen my sword."

The sailor shook his head, "Not sword fighting, but hand to hand fighting."

"Oh. No, I don't know how to fight hand to hand." the boy replied.

"Well," Linebeck said, as he threw his jacket off, "I'm going to teach you."

"Really?" The kid asked, sounding a bit unsure.

The sailor rolled up his sleeves and walked over to Link.

"Of course. You won't always have your sword on you. Now, lesson number one: fighting stances. Show me your fighting stance."

Link hesitantly put his hands out in front of him. Linebeck tried not to frown. The poor kid had everything absolutely wrong, everything from the way he held his hands, down to how he had his feet.

"Well, let's start with your feet. If you don't have the proper placement for your feet," Linebeck said as he walked over to Link.

The sailor stood in front of him. Linebeck faked a punch, causing the kid to lose his balance. A second later, the sailor hooked his leg behind Link's. He grabbed the kid's wrists before he could crash into the deck and lowered him to the ground.

"That is why footing is one of the most basic foundations is fighting." Linebeck went on as he helped the kid stand back up.

"You want your feet like this." The sailor explained as he moved his feet, "This stance is good for various reasons. With your feet staggered out, it gives you better balance. Don't have your feet too far apart though. Keep them between your shoulders and hips."

Linebeck adjusted Link's stance, placing him how he wanted him.

"Now, you also want to stand on your toes like this, on the balls of your feet. It allows you to move fairly easy. Don't stand flat footed, it makes you slow. Next is your torso. You want your hips to be below your shoulders; it's better for defense. Make sure you keep tension in your ab muscles. It hurts a heck of a lot less getting punched in the stomach if you have tension there. Trust me on this. Now for the arms and hands."

Linebeck adjusted the boys arms as he spoke, "Keep your right hand close to you; your dominate hand is to keep your face pretty."

"Um-" Link said apprehensively.

"What's up kid?" Linebeck asked.

Link stated. "I'm left handed."

"Oh, well then, your _left_ hand stays by your face. Make sure you keep your fist near your jaw and cheek. There's this spot on your cheek," Linebeck placed his fist on Lin's cheek to illustrate, "that if you hit it hard enough, you'll get knocked out. You don't want that. Now have your... right arm out a little further. That's for offense. Alright, your hands. No. Just no. "

The sailor grabbed Link's hands and undid his fists as he talked, "If you hold your thumb when you punch, you're going to break your thumb. Place your thumb here. Have your hand like this. You want your knuckles flat, a lot more surface to hit with. Hitting right here on your knuckles will do more damage to the other guy and hurt you less. And last, but certainly not least, your head. Keep your chin down, it makes it easier to protect your face. There, that's a lot better. Now, in order for this to be effective, you have to move around. Just try to hit me."

Linebeck got into his stance and started bobbing back and forth on the balls of his feet. Link threw a punch, but the sailor jumped out of the way. The captain threw a couple of light jabs back at the kid. Link managed to stop one blow, but got a light hit on the shoulder. They sparred for a few hours until the sun was high in the sky. Link had managed to land a few blows on Linebeck, and Link was getting better on avoiding the light blows. Their sparring came to an end when the waves started to get wild and an island appeared on the horizon.


	11. Salvage Arm

**I'm getting close to the point where writer's block will be slowing the story down. If you have any ideas for the story, I will try to put them in. Thank you to supersmach and ThePredicate for following.**

The rough waves made Linebeck uneasy. There was a lot of wind, and the waves were getting worse the closer they got to the island. It had the name Isle of Gust for a reason. After what felt like ages, they finally were able to pull the boat up to the dock. Linebeck felt uneasy letting Link run off on the island by himself, especially after just losing him, but also felt uneasy leaving his ship alone on such a windy island. Link assured him that he would be fine and took off to explore the isle. Linebeck stood on the front of his ship overlooking the island, keeping a watch out for any approaching ships or other dangers. After a while of waiting, Linebeck's thoughts drifted to home. His thoughts were interrupted when the postman landed beside him.

He pulled out a letter, "Delivery to Mr. Linebeck from one . Dear Linebeck, I have finally completed the salvage arm I've been working on. As per request I sent you this letter to inform you that you may come by any time to pick it up. With regards, Eddo."

The mail man nodded and took off, leaving Linebeck alone with his thoughts again. The wind knocked into him again. A huge gust of wind blew across the island, almost knocking Linebeck over. A second later the wind was back but not quite as strong as it was before. Minutes later Link was in sight walking towards the ship. He climbed aboard the ship and talked about what had happened. He had found another fairy and something that would help him progress further into the Temple of the Ocean King.

"Do you remember Eddo?" Linebeck asked Link.

Link nodded, "Yeah. Why do you ask?"

"He's got something for us to add to the ship. It should come in handy. In our search for the Ghost Ship." Linebeck said as he drew a triangle in the slate.

A whirlpool rushed up around them, engulfing the ship. As the whirlpool settled they found themselves in the middle of the ocean. They set course for Mercay Island with Link on the look out for any passing ships. An orange hue began to paint the sky. It danced off of every wave making a sight to behold. Silhouetted on the horizon was the small island. Deep purples and reds painted the sky as they pulled into port. Linebeck was absolutely thankful that his ship was the only one resting in port that night. Link was going to need to get a good night's sleep before heading into that death trap again.

Morning came and Linebeck began his morning ritual: make coffee, consume the nectar of the goddesses to wake him up, wake up Link from one of his crazy dreams, and get the boy something to eat. Link's dreams went back and forth between night terrors that would leave the boy an emotional wreck, or crazy dreams that were off the wall. Fortunately for Linebeck today was an off the wall morning. Link was dreaming about talking leaves this morning. The sailor shook the boy awake, and went off to get him something to eat.

Link had blown through the Temple of the Ocean King this time. He was really getting efficient at making his way through the temple. Grinning, the kid ran up to Linebeck with a new place to explore on his map. If it was good enough for Link, it was good enough for Linebeck. They set off for the new location on the map. After ages of sailing, they found themselves at the location on the map. Link looked at Linebeck with a confused expression when all they saw was water.

"Remember when I said Eddo might have something useful for us, it looks like now's the perfect time to pay him a visit." Linebeck said as he turned the ship towards Cannon Island.

It only took a few hours sailing before they made it to the island. Link sat on the deck and watched Fuzo attach the salvage arm while Linebeck caught up with Eddo. The inventor told Linebeck that if the salvage arm broke that the shipyard on Mercay Island should be able to patch it up for him. It took about an hour, but the salvage arm was finally secured to the ship and they could take off on their adventure again.

Once they had gotten back to the place on the map, Link lowered the salvage arm into the water. Linebeck walked over to the side of the ship and peered into the water. He did his best to give the kid directions, but it was so far down that the water darkened into a dark abyss. Every once in a while the arm would collide with something below the surface.

"Carefull Link, you don't want to wreck the salvage arm. We just got it." Linebeck warned as he peered into the water.

Link slowed the speed of the arm down. Eventually there was slack on the chain. They had to have hit something. In his excitement Link pulled up the arm up faster. The salvage arm wound up snagging on something under the water. Panicking, the boy accidently flipped the wrong switch and made the arm try to pull up at full speed. A second later a wire in the salvage arm snapped.

Linebeck turned towards Link as he heard the boy let out a small yelp. Link stood there looking shell shocked. Growing dark stains on Link's arms and tears running streaks down his face caught the captain's attention. A knot tied itself in his stomach as he realized that Link had been hurt by the salvage arm.

"Oh Link, let's get you patched up." The sailor said worriedly as the stains grew darker.

Linebeck walked Link into his room and set him up on a counter. The captain threw off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. The captain walked over and gingerly pushed up the kid's sleeves, careful not to hurt him. The knot in his stomach tightened as he saw the cuts on his arms. Hastily, he grabbed a rag and some rubbing alcohol from the cabinet beside him.

"This will sting." Linebeck said as he poured the rubbing alcohol on the cloth.

Link hissed in pain as the cloth touched a cut on his arm, tears still running down his face. The sailor gently dabbed the cuts, drawing out any infection. He grabbed another cloth and cleaned up any blood left on the boy's arms. The sailor walked over to a cabinet and grabbed out bandages and a salve. After dabbing some salve onto the wounds to prevent infection, he washed his hands and began working on bandaging up Link's arms. He wrapped the boy's arms carefully and tied the bandages up.

"Sorry." Link said quietly, tears still rolling down his cheeks.

Linebeck wiped the tears off of Link's face and gave him a comforting smile, "It's fine Link. We can always head back to Mercay Island and get it fixed up."

The captain helped the kid off the counter and rustled his hair. Linebeck was surprised when he felt arms wrap around him. Never had Link hugged _him_ when he was fully awake. The captain returned the hug an instant later. Link was certainly growing on him, and Linbeck didn't mind it.


	12. Repairs

**I was riding in the back on one if the trips from Indiana to South Carolina and was able to get this chapter done on a phone. Sorry for autocorrect errors. Also, thank you to HyruleHearts1123 for favoriting and Alanis Strife for the review.**

After the disaster with the salvage arm they headed for Mercay Island. Eddo was right, the guy at the port knew how to fix up the salvage arm. Sure it cost them a pretty rupee, but it was essential in finding the Ghost Ship. The repairman said it would take him a few hours to put the thing back together and replace the broken part. To pass the time, Linebeck and Link walked around the island.

Link and Linebeck walked from store to store buying supplies for their ship to kill time. After a month and a half of sailing they had gone through a majority of what was left on their ship. They had to take three trips for all the dry goods, one of which consisted mostly of coffee for Linebeck, and one trip for the meat and produce. It had taken them a few hours, but they had the cargo hold packed up for their next journey. Once that was done, Linebeck told the kid to head to his room to check his bandages.

The sailor hoisted the kid onto the counter and pushed up his sleeves. The cuts had already scabbed over,but a little bit of salve wouldn't hurt things. It would keep them from getting infected; better safe than sorry. Once the cuts were covered in salve, the sailor picked up the boy and set him back down on the ground. Linebeck noticed that the kid was messing with his sleeves.

"What's wrong?" The captain asked with a raised eyebrow.

"My sleeves keep riding up." Replied the boy, still trying to pull his sleeves down.

Linebeck chuckled, "It hasn't even been two months and you're already growing out of the clothes I bought. Come on, let's get you some new clothes, again."

" _Sure thing dad_." Link said quickly as he dashed out of the room.

Linbeck rolled his eyes, and tried suppressing a smile. He allowed himself to smile when he remembered how much Link hated clothes shopping. This was going to be _hilarious_.

The shop keeper had a big grin on her face when she saw Link and Linebeck walk through the door. Link did not have a huge grin on his face, he was trying to keep a scowl from forming as she fussed over him. She grabbed out her measuring tape and began measuring.

"Oh my. You've been growing a lot. You just shot up two inches since you were here last." She said as she jotted down his measurements.

"We better get you something you can grow into this time." commented Linebeck.

"Sure thing." The shop keeper replied as she searched for clothes in Link's size.

Something caught the sailor's eye as he waited on Link to try on his clothes. Did they have the other stuff to go with it? Yes they did. Perfect. The sailor walked up to Link and handed him a pile of clothes. The boy raised an eyebrow as he looked at the clothes. He shrugged and walked I to the changing room.

"Really?" the kid shouted from the changing room a minute later.

Linebeck couldn't stiffle his laughter when Link walked out of the changing room. He looked like a mini Linebeck. The outfit was spot on.

"Laugh all you want; I actually think I pull it off better than you." Smart mouthed Link.

"Pft, in your dreams kid." Linebeck scoffed as he rustled the kid's hair, "Now come on and get changed. We need to go check on the ship."

Linebeck walked up to the counter and pulled out rupees to pay. Link walked out of the changing room still holding the clothes Linebeck had given him.

"Go put em back. I was just joking with you. You don't have to get them." Linebeck said absentmindedly.

Link looked at Linebeck hesitantly, "But I kinda want them. I mean, if one of us is going to wear that outfit, it might as well be the one who looks the best in it."

Linebeck laughed, "If you say so kid."

The duo walked out if the store and walked back towards the ship. After dropping off the clothes, Linebeck wanted to check on the state of repairs. The sailor frowned when he heard that the repairs wouldn't be finished for another half hour. Oh well, they'd figure out something to do. Wait, he had the perfect thing to pass the time. The captain chuckled when he saw the kid had changed back into the outfit he had picked out.

"Link. Go along the beach and grab some small flat rocks." Linebeck ordered.

Link gave the sailor a weird look before heading towards the beach. Linebeck followed along also looking for rocks. Too bumpy, too big around, ah, a perfect one, too heavy, but it might do, oooh, another good one. Once he had enough rocks, he called the kid back over.

"Do you know what we're gonna do with these?" Linebeck asked.

Link shook his head, still clearly confused.

"We're going to skip stones. Have you ever skipped stones before?" Inquired the captain.

"Nope. How do you skip rocks?" Link asked.

"You find a flat rock, like this one. And you hold it like this," Linebeck demonstrated, "reel back your arm, whip your arm, and flick the rock."

With that, he sent the rock skidding across the water. It skipped across the surface three times before sinking into the water.

"Your turn." the sailor instructed.

Link grabbed a rock and imitated Linebeck. He reeled his arm back, whipped it and sent the rock straight into the water.

"I don't think my rock was good enough." Link stated looking a bit bummed.

"Your rock was fine. You have to throw it at the right angle. It just takes practice. You'll get it eventually." Linebeck said as he handed Link another rock.

This time when he let go of the rock it skipped twice. A huge grin appeared on his face; and the sailor couldn't help but smile too.

 **Give me ideas to put into the story and I will try to think of how to add them in while I move, I have a LONG drive ahead of me.**


	13. Overboard

**Finally all moved to South Carolina. 13 hours of driving without cruise control was awful. But now I have _a lot_ of unpacking to do. If you haven't read chapter 12, it is fully written so go and check it out if you haven't. Thank you to It'sJustAKindOfMagic for subscribing.**

Finally they were able to set back out to the spot marked on Link's map. Linebeck docked the ship and walked over to Link and the salvage arm. Link peered down into the depths below with an uneasy look on his face. The sailor walked over to the boy and placed a comforting hand on his back.

"I can control the arm this time if you want me to." Linebeck offered.

Link walked over to the side of the ship and peered down as the arm was lowered into the dark abyss. Linebeck adjusted the salvage arm to Link's specifications. Things seemed to go a bit more smoothly this time. The arm only banged against objects in the mysterious depths twice. A minute later the arm resurfaced with a large chest attached to the other end. Carefully, the sailor lowered the chest onto the deck.

They tried to pry open the chest, but it had rusted shut in its years in the waters below them. Linebeck ordered Link to rush downstairs and grab a crowbar. Once he had the old piece of metal in his hand, he wedged it in between the lid and the box. After a bit of prying, the old chest popped open revealing an old key in the shape of a sun. While it held very little meaning to the sailor, Link looked at the fairy with excitement.

Link rushed below deck and grabbed out his slate. He quickly sketched an oval with a line running down it and they found themselves sitting in another part of the ocean. Linebeck dashed up to the steering wheel and set a course for Molida Island. From their current location is would probably take them about two days to reach the island. Until then, they had nothing better to do than to watch out for pirates and other monsters of the sea.

* * *

It was the open sea for miles ahead, and that pleased Linebeck. What didn't please the sailor was how rough the seas were getting. The further towards the ocean they were getting the more wild the waves got. That fact alone made the sailor worry. The ship would lurch to the side unexpectedly as the waves slapped at the boat. At first the boat would jolt enough to make them lose their footing for a second, now it was causing them to cling onto the railing or steering wheel every few seconds or nearly fall over. Just as he was about to tell Link to go below deck, they were hit a huge wave which sent the kid flying into the water. Linebeck immediately turned his engine of and rushed over to throw over the ladder.

The kid tried his hardest to swim for the boat, but the rising waves battered at the kid, pushing him further from the boat. Every wave slapped the boy across the face, taking him under for a second. The kid popped up every time, but it was clearly taking a toll on him. Wild waves arched from every direction, slamming harsley against the boat. Linebeck could only imagine what it was doing to the kid. He wasn't going to last long at this rate. Linebeck threw off his jacket and leaped into the water.

Goddesses, was the current strong. Waves kept knocking the back of the sailor's head as he swam. At this point the kid was barely hanging on, struggling to tread water. Linebeck could hear the boy trying to spit out water and gasp for breath every few seconds. The undertow was clearly taking its toll on his small body. Linebeck was almost to there, only about ten feet away from the kid. A second later, a huge wave crashed over them, sending them both under. Whirling around under the surface of the water, Linebeck reached out to fin the boy. The sailor was disoriented for a second as the current whipped and spun him around. He managed to fight the current and surface.

Linebeck looked around to see where the kid was at. Panic set in when the kid was nowhere to be found. He dove under the water to look for him. Salt water burned his eyes, but that didn't matter to him. He saw the kid struggling to find his way to the surface. Just as he was about to reach the kid, he stopped struggling. This absolutely terrified Linebeck. The sailor managed to grab the kid and pull him back to the surface.

The kid's gasp for air was music to Linebeck's ears. Fortunately, the waves had settled down a bit. It made it easier for Linebeck to swim back while keeping the barely conscious kid above the water. The sailor was absolutely exhausted by the time they collapsed on the deck. They laid there for a second as they caught their breath.

"Are you okay?" Linebeck asked.

The kid nodded in response, clearly out of breath.

"Good." Linebeck grabbed the kid's shoulders, "Don't ever scare me like that again Link. Now let's get you dried off and warmed up before you get sick."

He sent Link down to his room to get changed out of his soaked clothes. Linebeck walked into his room and peeled his soaked clothes off and changed. After that was done he started up a fire in the fireplace. The fire was roaring by the time Link had gotten changed. Linebeck threw his jacket over the boy in an attempt to warm him up faster. He sat down next to the kid warming up his hands by the fire.

"What's that?" Link asked noticing the ring on his neck.

"This?" Replied Linebeck grabbing at his ring.

"Yeah."

"It was my wedding ring." Linebeck said quietly.

"You're married?" The kid asked sounding a little surprised.

Linebeck looked at the fire as he spoke, "I was. She got sick, and didn't get better."

"Oh." Link quietly replied, "I'm sorry I brought it up."

"Don't be. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss seeing her smile. She had a smile that could light the room. It was real contagious. If anyone had a bad day, she knew just how to make it better." The sailor said with a small smile.

"She sounds like my mom, at least, that's what everyone says." Link said quietly.

"Did you loose your mother?" Linebeck asked.

"I was four when she got sick. She didn't get better." The boy replied quietly.

Linebeck continued to stare at the fire.

He took a minute of contemplation before he asked, "Do you remember anything about your mother?"

Link replied quietly, "Not really. I know that my mom loved looking at the sunrise and sunsets with my father whenever he came home. Everything else that I know about my parents is from what people have told me."

The captain tilted his head to the side, "You don't remember your dad either? Did he get sick too?"

He shook his head, "No. My father was a sailor. He went out on a voyage a few months after my mom died. His ship went missing. I was hoping that the ghost ship might have clues on his disappearance."

Linebeck felt like a ton of bricks slammed down in him. No. No way. It was impossible. Since he had been spirited away by the ghost ship he had never come across anyone who had heard of where he had come from. But now, after all this time, would he have the answer he had been looking for?

Linebeck cleared his throat, looked Link in the eye and asked, "Have you ever heard of Outset Island?"

 **Again I apologize for the long wait. I had a lot of unpacking to do and felt bogged down and didn't want to write for a while, but everything is good now.**


	14. How to tell him

**Thank you to Moonlight Raven Grave, HyruleHearts1123, and Link Fangirl01 for reviewing and Link Fangirl01 for following.**

The question hung in the air for a moment as Link sat there in a confused state before answering hesitantly, "Yeah. That's where I'm from."

Linebeck felt his chest tighten up like the air in his lungs had filled with water. His heart was beating like a drum.

"You wouldn't happen to have a younger sister?" Linbeck hesitantly asked. This was it. This was the question that would lay his suspicions to rest.

"I do. How do you-" the boy said sounding really surprised, his green eyes growing wide.

Before Linebeck could reply the boat lurched to the side. The duo jumped up and rushed for the door. Flinging the door open they were met with a gigantic sea monster. Linebeck's heart pounded so fast Linebeck thought it would leap out of his chest. Green eyes flicked back and forth between the young boy and the monster. Fear for Link's well being overwhelmed him for a brief moment. He couldn't let the ifs take him over; he had to act quick to ensure their safety, especially Link's.

"Man the cannon, I'll maneuver the ship around the beast." Linebeck ordered.

His pounding heartbeat could be heard in Linebeck's ears. Every shot of the cannon helped calm his nerves as it dealt heavy blows to the beast. His heart almost stopped as the monster spat out a giant green spike ball at the ship. He let out a cheer as Link blasted the ball to smithereens. Green eyes narrowed as he spun the wheel of the ship, countering the wild waves that rocked the boat. Link was not relenting on the cannon. Nearly every cannon landed a blow on the beast. Quickly maneuvering the ship around the monster, Link prepped his final blow. The monster cried out in pain and collapsed into the water causing a large wave to splash over the boat. They stood there stunned for a moment, completely soaked. Moments later the waves subsided as the clouds dispersed.

"Well so much for dry clothes." Link quietly joked.

Linebeck laughed and walked over to the blond kid and placed his hand on his shoulder.

There was so much Linebeck wanted to tell Link, but he only managed to get out, "Good job Link. We should probably get changed. Again."

Linebeck steered the ship into the dock and tied it up. Once that was taken care of he went into his room to change out of his wet clothes. Link quickly changed and dashed back to the deck just as Linebeck walked out of his captain's quarters. A blur rushed by him before he even realized it was the young boy.

"Be careful!" Linebeck yelled after Link

The sailor walked out onto the deck and inspected the damage caused by the strange sea monster. Only a few dents and some chipped paint, nothing really to worry about. What he had to worry about was how he was going to tell Link. He felt like a weight was pressing down on his chest. Linebeck started pacing as he tried to think of the best way to tell the boy.

' _You know how you asked me how I knew that you had a sister, well- No. That's...hmmm...How do I... Ugh...Do I just come out and tell him... Hey Link! Turns out, I'm your father...No...no...what if he hates me for leaving? Would he be mad that I never came back. Of course he'd be mad...Should I still tell him? Ugh...I don't know...but it will be worse if he finds out a lot later and I didnt tell him as soon as I was sure...I have to tell him...He probably won't be mad anyway... I'm probably overthinking this..but how to tell him...I have no idea how to though... This is so hard..._

* * *

Green eyes peered over the edge of the deck, scanning for his son. It was still hard to think about. An array of emotions churned in his stomach. Every passing moment made him even more at unease. Soon enough though, he saw a small figure with four faries bounding towards the ship. That sight still didn't completely calm him down, instead it raised a different set of anxious emotions in him.

Link had a huge grin plastered to his face, "I found the last spirit." His grin faded, "But there's something wrong with it. It seems _empty_. Maybe Oshus might know what's wrong with it."

"Maybe." Linebeck stated. "But first, I need to talk to you. Alone." He calmly said as he looked at the other fairies.

A blond eyebrow was raised at him, but none the less, Link followed him into his room. Linebeck shut the door behind him a let out a small anxious huff. He rubbed his face trying to remember how he was going to start this.

Link looked up at him, his face full of worry, "Is something wrong?"

"No-no-no-no-no." Linebeck hastily replied, trying to ease the boy's mind. "We have a lot to talk about but I'm not quite sure where to start." He took in a deep breath and sighed again.

"Well, just start from the beginning." Link stated as he looked up at the older man.

After a second of contemplation he figured out where to start, "A few years ago I was on a trader ship delivering goods to a near by island. After a few days out at sea we found ourselves surrounded by a mysterious fog. We soon found ourselves boarded by the Ghost Ship that appeared with the sudden fog. We had two options: become a part of the crew, or stay behind with little chance of survival. I chose the option that would most likely get me home alive. What I didn't know it that we would be spirited away, never to hear of anyone who knew of where we had come from. I had lost hope in finding someone who had heard of my home island, until today. After a while we began to notice that something was a miss with the ship. The old crew started to disappear. We tried to escape but we were caught. I somehow managed to get off the boat, but a lot of great men were forever imprisoned on that ship."

"My father was on that boat wasn't he." Link said, looking like his world had been shattered.

"Yes. He was but he managed to escape." Linebeck said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

His emerald eyes lit up, "Really? Do you think he's still out there somewhere?"

"Do you remember when Astrid said that what we were looking for was right in front of us the whole time?" The sailor asked.

The blond nodded, "Yeah. I thought she was referring to how you didn't know I was with Oshus after the pirates got me."

"She wasn't referring to that..." The older man started.

"But what else could she have been..." Link trailed off as the realization hit him; Linebeck was his father.

At first Linebeck didn't know how well Link had taken it. He stood there in shock for a whole minute. He was mad at him. At any moment he would be hearing all about how much his son was mad at him. Any second now. Instead of yelling, Link broke out into laughter. The older man raised an eyebrow. He certainly was not expecting this response from his son.

"The shopkeeper called it from the beginning." Link managed to say between fits of laughter; his face was bright red.

Linebeck couldn't help but laugh too. He was right. Somehow, she called it, long before anyone else. And boy was he in for it the next time they went back in there. He knew that Link would make sure of it.


	15. Uncorking the bottle

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01, HyruleHearts1123, and Moonlight Raven Grave for reviewing and to BobbertCanuk and neveranyonehere for following. Thank you for making this my most popular story with over 1,000 views.**

Linebeck was relieved. That went a lot better than expected, at least, he hoped it did. Linebeck occasionally glanced down at Link as he set the course for Mercay Island. He was worried about how well his son was actually taking the news. Sure he laughed at the fact that the shopkeeper was the first one of them to figure it out, but after that... he seemed a little distant. Maybe it had to do with saving his friend, but he felt like that news did something to him and Link was not going to admit it. Once the course was set, the older man stepped away from the steering wheel and walked over to the boy- his _son_.

"Are you okay?" Linebeck asked quietly.

Link continued to look out at the sea, a wave of emotions was clearly washing over his face. They stood there in silence, listening to the waves pound against the boat, the engine was sputtering making its usual noises. The sun began to dip lower into the sky, the first hints of sunset were beginning to show.

Link let out a small sigh as spoke quietly, "I don't know. I don't know how I should feel. For as long as I can remember, I've been told practically nothing about you or my mom. _You and your sister look just like your mother when she was your age. Her smile was contagious, and your sister smiles just like her. You've got your dad's smile and his knack for getting into trouble._ That's all I've heard about mom, about you. Its so hard for me to remember what mom looked like. I only see my sister when I try to remember her."

Link's voice was beginning to crack, "Everyone thought the ship you were on sank in some storm, until three months ago. And then I heard about the Ghost Ship. I knew that if I ever saw you again, I wouldn't know how to feel once I found you."

His green eyes looked down at the ocean waves, which were beginning to glow a with a tint of orange.

"A part of me is really happy that we found each other again. To be honest Linebeck... er... I guess I should say... _dad_ ," that word felt so strange to say, and weird for Linebeck to hear, "you were starting to be like a father to me before either of us knew that you, uh, were... er, uh, are my dad. It's weird thinking about it too. I still want to call you by your name. I guess it will take some getting used to." Link quietly laughed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Linebeck chuckled to himself while also rubbing the back of his neck, "Yeah, tell me about it. I haven't heard you call me dad in a long time." His voice trailed off as he looked back out at the sea.

"Part of me also wants to be mad at you. I shouldn't be mad though. But I am mad at the fact that you didn't stay behind and try to make it back home. But I know why you went on the ship. It's just..." again his voice cracked, tears were starting to well up in his eyes, "Sure Aryll and I had Grandma... but... it's been hard not having you around."

The older man had a feeling that it was going to end up like this, he knew it was only a matter of time. A moment later Linebeck pulled him into a tight hug. Link couldn't hold back the tears anymore. He let out the pent up emotions he had been bottling up for a long time. Sobs began to rack the boy's body as tears streamed down his cheeks. Linebeck just held onto his son tightly as he cried and fought back his own tears.

"I know. I know it's been hard." His voice quivered, "I missed you guys _so much_. There hasn't been a single day that I never not thought about you." He squeezed Link tighter as his own tears began to fall.

* * *

Linebeck bent over his trunk in the corner of his room and began rifling through its contents. It had to be there somewhere. He knew it was in there. But where was- ah ha! There it was. His fingers grasped the picture from and gently pulled it out of the trunk. It looked just like it had when he first got it. It was a picture of his wife, and Link's mother.

She had given him thus as an engagement present. It was so he could see her even when he was out at sea. He greatly treasured it, but after her death it was painful for him to look at. His lips began to curl into a smile. His wife's blond hair fell in wisps in front of her eyes. Her large smile showing off the dimples she never grew out of. This would be perfect. He went downstairs, photo in hand and knocked on Link's door.

"Come in." He heard through the door.

Linebeck opened the door to reveal the boy curled up on his bed. He was staring at the wall in front of him but he sat up and turned his gaze towards his father as he stepped into the room. Link was still mulling everything over, and Linebeck couldn't blame him. The poor kid had been through a lot, especially the past few hours.

"I found something you might like." Linebeck offered as he handed the picture frame to the boy.

Link looked at him with a confused expression on his face before looking the picture over. His face changed rapidly as he realized what he was looking at. Link was drinking up every detail of the picture. emerald eyes continued to gaze at the picture. After a few more moments he looked up from the picture, now teary-eyed and latched onto Linebeck, pulling him into a hug. Slowly, Link pulled himself back onto the bed.

He looked up at Linebeck a bit sheepishly and asked, "Can you tell me something about my mother?"

The sailor sat down in a chair across from the bed, "Where do you want me to start?"

"What was she like?" he asked.

"Well," the older man started, "You know how your knack for getting into trouble, and how you got it from me?"

The boy nodded as Linebeck continued, "Not many people know this," He leaned in as if he were telling him a big secret, "but I got it from her. You would not believe the trouble we got ourselves into, and she was the ringleader. When she got her mind set on something, we did it. We got into so much trouble, and I got blamed for every stupid thing we did." He shook his head, smiling at the memories, "You see this scar on my arm," Linebeck pulled up a sleeve revealing a long scar running down his forearm, "I got this after we decided to climb the huge rock in the little inlet of water near our house. We decided to play sword fight on top of it and fell off and scraped arm. I got grounded for a week after that. Then there's the scar above my eyebrow. That's from where your mom hit me in the head with a shovel."

"What?" Link asked with huge eyes.

"It was an accident of course. We had managed to catch a salamander and make it our pet. Well, your mother wanted to feed it so we started digging up dirt to look for worms. She had me looking for worms as she dug. The shovel got caught on a root and smacked me in the head. I got my butt whipped for not only that, but for the large hole we dug. Besides getting us into all kinds of trouble, your mother was the fastest kid on Outset Island. It didn't matter who she ran against, she would beat them by a mile. I still don't know how she did it. It got to the point where no one would race her unless we had a ten second head start." He laughed to himself recalling the old memories.

He leaned back in his chair and looked at Link with a smile, "Your mother came up with your name you know."

"Really."Link stated sounding a bit surprised.

"Yep. She was actually going to name you after me, but I didn't want a you to have to have my name because I never liked it as a kid. So she decided to shorten it. At first she wanted to name you Beck."

"Beck?" the boy asked, clearly not liking the name.

"Yeah. I told her it would wind up with you getting called Becky, and that's a girl's name. And I was _not_ going to give you a girl's name. So I started listing off family names. Link just so happened to be a family name, and happened to be a shortening of my name so it made your mother especially happy. Even though I mentioned the name first, she still claimed the credit for it." He laughed to himself, "Don't even get me started on how we came up with the name Aryll for your sister. That was its own mess." He waved his hand dismissively as he rolled his eyes.

They sat there talking about his mother for a while. Link's head began to droop after a while. Despite his best efforts, he eventually succumbed to sleep. Linebeck noticed the passed out boy and stood up. He removed the boy's boots, setting them down by his bed. The sailor pulled the covers over the boy and brushed a lock of blond hair from his face. Linebeck set the picture of his mother on the nightstand and walked out of the room. While the day may not have gone as well as he had hoped, it certainly ended on a decent note.


	16. Cucco Pox

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01 and Moonlight Raven Grave for reviewing and Mr. Evil Tree for following. Thank you for all the constructive criticism you guys have given me. If you want to see something in the story tell me and I will try to put it in.**

Linebeck figured he'd let Link sleep in for once. Goddesses knew they had stayed up way to late last night; besides the boy could use some sleep. As he sipped his coffee he mulled things over. Things were going to be rocky between them for a while. He sighed. A part of him wished they could go back to how it was before they knew, it certainly wouldn't be as awkward. But, Linebeck knew it was better this way. They would get through this patch off awkwardness. He just hoped it would be over quickly. He took his last sip of coffee and headed upstairs.

The ocean was the calmest the sailor had seen it in a long time. The water calmly lapped up against the sides of the boat. Days like this were perfect days for sailing. If it kept up like this, they'd make it to Mercay Island by tomorrow morning. He pulled out his telescope and began searching for figures on the edge of the horizon. A few leagues away he notice Beetle's ship puttering along, making it's usual rounds. Other than that, there was nothing but them and the open sea. His attention was pulled when he heard a voice behind him.

"Morning." he heard his son say,

The older man replied, "Good morning to you too. I'm surprised you're up this early."

They stood there, leaning against the rail, listening to the sounds of waves. Linebeck glanced down at his son. He was fidgeting with his fingers. The silence was broken a moment later by Link again.

"Linebeck..er... dad, do you think we could do more of that fighting stuff?" a quiet voice asked.

"I don't see why not." he said smiling as they walked over to the middle of the deck, "Alright, show me your fighting pose again."

Link thought for a moment before remembering how to stand. He held his left hand in front of of his face and held out his right arm a bit further. His legs and feet were also where supposed to be.

"Good. You still remember. Now one thing that always comes in handy is a fake out." Linebeck proceeded to demonstrate.

He went to throw a punch with his left hand and Link went to block it. He then sung his right arm, slowing it down and tapping him lightly on the cheek.

"As you can see, you were so focus on my left hand, that you didn't notice my right hook. You don't want to use fake outs too much though. You want to keep the element of surprise."

Link smiled as he attempted to do his own fake out. Linebeck caught Link's wrist.

"Alright Mr. Clever, how do you get out of this?" smirked Linebeck

Link yanked his arm back, but was still firmly held in the older man's grasp. He tried swinging another blow at his father, but he deflected it with his free hand.

"Come on. You got this."

Again he yanked his captive arm which did resulted in no change. His free hand tried to pry his father's fingers from his wrist. Quickly thinking, he plopped down on the ground, causing the sailor to loose his grip on the arm.

"Well that's not how I would have done it, but you did it. That way won't always work either. Next time try this," instructed Linebeck as he grabbed his wrist again. "You almost had it the first time. What you want to do is take a wide stance, now lean forward a bit. There. Just like that. Now bring your elbow up. By bringing up your elbow it makes it difficult to hold. See, how that makes me loose my grip."

For most of the day they worked on different types of hold and how to escape them. First he would introduce a hold and see if Link could get out by his own means. Whether he was successful or not, he would show him the most effective way of escape. The choker hold seemed to be the most difficult hold for Link to escape. But after a few tries, he managed to get out of the hold every single time it snuck up on him. They continued to practice for most of the day, stopping occasionally to eat or look out for any enemy ships. After a while, Link became wore out. He definitely was going to get a goods night rest.

* * *

Morning light drifted in through the window in Linebeck's room, pulling him from his slumber. He started his morning ritual and went to throw on his jacket. It took him several attempts to realize that one of the sleeves was inside out. Linebeck needed to get coffee into him before he did any more stupid things in his groggy state. Once he had coffee and its sweet caffeine running through his veins he headed back up the the deck.

The sailor checked his charts to enure that they were still headed for Mercay Island. Fortunately, they still were and it looked like they would be there in an hour or so. A tiny blip on horizon could be seen, and rapidly growing larger. Linebeck had zoned out, going back to his previous thoughts. Before he new it the port was upon them. After docking the ship he walked downstairs to check on Link and to make sure he wasn't having any nightmares.

Opening the door slightly, he saw Link, sound asleep in his bed. He was more or less half on his bed, half off it. One leg dangling, sheets entwined around his legs. One arm was tucked under him at an angle that had to be uncomfortable. How he could sleep in those strange positions and not wake up sore, he'd never know. At the very least he wasn't having nightmares, and that's what mattered. He shut the door as quietly as he could and made his way towards the cargo hold.

Green eyes began overlooking the supplies as he jotted down the state of the inventory. They still had plenty of coffee, which pleased the sailor. He moved a crate out of the way and inspected the inspected the treasures they had found along the way. How many steering wheels and anchors did the need? Apparently seven assorted steering wheels, and twelve different anchors. While it was nice to hang onto a few extras in case of an emergency, the others could be sold for a pretty rupee. Once he had separated out which ones he wanted to sell, he decided to make his way towards the harbor store.

The harbor shopkeeper raised his head from a stack of papers when he saw Linebeck enter the store. He re stacked the papers and straightened up his counter, brushing away any dust on the surface.

A smile grew across his face, "Linebeck, what can I do ya for?"

"Oh, not much Greg. Just a few ship parts to sell if your interested." Linebeck replied.

"Sure I'm interested. People go through so many parts around here, I barely have any stock left." Greg shook his head, "Normally it isn't so hard to get more stock but it's been even crazy around since John got cucco pox a few days back. Mark's been staying home watching the little fella, but I'll send him to grab your spare parts later."

"That's fine. Is John the one Link was talking to the other day when I came in to buy the parts to my steam engine?" The sailor asked, hoping he was mistaken.

Greg nodded and let out a breath, "Yeah, he is. I hope he didn't catch it from John."

"Link hasn't seemed sick, so I highly doubt it. Besides, I think he had it when he was little." He replied.

He thought it was Link who had it. Maybe it was Aryll. He couldn't remember. Whoever it was, they were just a little kid and it had it most of the time he was away on a voyage. Oh, well. Besides, what were the odds that Link would have caught it from John in the first place?

* * *

Linebeck decided to head back to ship in case Link had gotten up since he had gone. He opened the door expecting to see a sleeping Link, but found and empty room instead. Maybe he went to grab something to eat. He made his way into the kitchen and saw the boy sitting at the table, his arms covering his head that was resting on the table.

"You have to eat something Link." The fairy pleaded.

"Not hungry." was the only reply he gave.

The fairy noticed the older man's presence and flew up, inches away from his face, "Tell Link he has to eat something."

Wearily the blond raised his head off the table in protest, "My stomach hurts and I'm not that hungry anyway. Besides that my head hurts and I just don't feel good. Would you just let me be Celia?" With that, he wearily stood up and pushed his chair in after scratching at this neck.

"Hold on," Linebeck said as he put an arm out in front of Link.

He wearily looked up at his father. Linebeck placed a hand on the boy's forehead. It was hot to the touch. He bent down and noticed a small bumps and a rash was starting to break out on Link's neck. He pulled up one of Link's sleeves and saw more tiny bumps on his little arms. Of course, the universe loved proving him wrong.

"You need to go lay down. And stop that itching. It will make it worse. I'll be back in a little bit. I need to pick up some oatmeal and lots of it."

"Oatmeal?" Link repeated sounding confused.

"Yeah. Oatmeal baths help with cucco pox." He informed as he ushered the boy out of the room.

* * *

He came back to find Link trying desperately to scratch his back. Link let out a small wine when he pulled his hands away from his back.

"But Linebeck, I mean... dad, my back really itches." He protested.

"I know it does. Trust me, been there done that. But its not good to scratch at it. It makes it itch a lot worse and leaves scars." Linebeck empathized.

Link gave him a miserable look. His hands were outstretched and fingers wriggling as he tried to not scratch his itchy body. Linebeck new he was going to have a hard time resisting the urge to relieve the itchiness.

"I got an oatmeal bath for you in the other room. They might sound weird, but they really do help the itching." He offered as he pulled him off of his bed. "After that I can rub some calamine lotion on your back.

The poor kid was in for a few long and miserable days ahead if him. Every once and a while Linebeck would catch Link scratching his itches. It occurred so often that he threatened to tie his hands together so he wouldn't scratch anymore. The clever kid began to just rub at his itches fiercely. He argued that he wasn't _scratching_ he was just _rubbing_ so his hands didn't need to be tied up. He shook his head in defeat, the kid was right. After a few more days of itchy torture, the cucco pocks began to fade.


	17. The Ghost Ship

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01 and ThePredicate for reviewing.**

Link rolled his eyes as Linebeck placed his hand over Link's forehead. The boy kept saying he felt better the past few days, but still had a burning forehead that said otherwise. This time, nothing. His fever had finally gone down. It had been a _long_ week for Link, and he was more than happy to finally leave his room for something other than oatmeal baths.

Linebeck was practically dragged by his son the entire way to Oshus' hut on the other side of the island, desperate for answers. He couldn't help but smile at his antics. When they finally got up the hill the old man was standing outside like he was expecting them. A small smile was hiding behind his bushy beard.

"So I see you have found the Spirit of Courage. There is something I need to tell you Celia." Oshus started to say.

The fairy flew up to the old man and asked, "What is it Grandpa?"

"You are not an ordinary fairy, but the spirit of courage." Link and Linebeck gave each other confused glasses as he continued, "You see you were attacked by Bellum, the creature that the Ghost Ship works for. To protect yourself from his wrath, you divided yourself into two forms. The other fairy you found contains your lost memories and your powers."

"Powers?" Ceila asked curiously.

"Yes, powers that should hold the key to finding the Ghost Ship. Now, it is time for you to return to your true form." With that the old man raised his staff.

It began to emit a bright light. Link and Linebeck had to shield their eyes as the brightness of the light intensified. A sudden gush of air wrapped around them. Moments later the light faded, revealing a single fairy. Instead of the blue form she normally had, she now had a golden glow to her.

"I-I can sense the Ghost Ship!" Exclaimed the yellow fairy.

The red fairy pipped in, "Me too!"

"Now that we're all back together, I can sense it too." The green fairy added.

"Let's go!" exclaimed Celia.

The fairies rushed back towards the ship, with Linebeck and Link trailing behind.

* * *

Thick fog enveloped the ship, concealing everything around him. An enemy could sneak up on them at any moment. If it wasn't for the fairies, Linebeck would have been at even more unease than he currently was. Still, the continued on. The hair on the back of his neck perked up as a dark shadow began to appear in the distance. Moments later, the Ghost Ship began to take shape. Slowly, he brought his little boat to a halt next to the cursed ship.

Link walked over the the railing of the ship and threw a grappling hook. It securely gripped the railing of the Ghost Ship. Link was just about to climb up the rope when Linebeck put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. Green eyes looked up at him with confusion.

Linebeck whispered in a low voice, "No. Stay here. I know that ship better than anybody. I'll be right back."

With a defiant expression, Link argued, "What if you get into trouble? I'm going with you."

Goddesses, he had his mother's stubbornness. She would always give him that same look whenever she wanted to do something. Unfortunately for Link, that look wouldn't work on him now. He feared too much for his safety to give in.

"I lost you once. I'm not loosing you to another pirate ship, especially this one. Now, please, stay here." Linebeck pleaded.

Link's look of defiance lessened, but was still there.

"I'll tell you what, if I need help, I'll yell for you." he bargained.

This seemed to please Link, "Deal. Be safe."

"Always am." He replied as he grabbed a hold of the rope.

He slowly scaled the massive haul of the haunted ship. When he reached the top, he stopped and looked around for any dangers. Nothing was in sight. Linebeck didn't know whether to be relieved or paranoid. Relief might get him into trouble, paranoia would be his best bet at keeping him safe. Carefully, he snuck his way into entrance to the cabin. Alright, the third step would squeak if you stepped anywhere but the far left, or was it the far right? Darn, it had been so long since he had been on this giant death trap. Deciding not to risk it, he cautiously skipped the step. Alright, just a few more steps. The last step before the bottom defiantly squeaked in the middle. He stepped on the right and looked around the corner.

The only sound he heard was the sound of the old wood settling and creaking as it rocked on the ocean waves. All clear. Just to be safe, he'd head down to the third floor and retrieve his sword from the wine barrels. He had hidden it a long time ago, and unfortunately had to leave it behind as he made his escape. The sailor prayed to the Goddesses that his sword was still there. Even if he didn't need it, he was still very fond of it. Soon enough he made his way into the wine cellar. Stepping carefully around the giant wine barrels, he made his way to the sword's hiding spot. Bingo. It was right where he left it. Now he could make his way to the brig. Tetra was bound to be there.

Linebeck winced as he accidentally kicked a barrel. He paused, hoping that no one heard the noise. After a moment of waiting to be discovered, he assumed he hadn't been discovered. As he made his way towards the brig he felt a chill run down his spine. He froze instantly. Emerald eyes quickly glanced around to find... _nothing_. Linebeck let out a small breath of relief and pressed on.

Now there was going to be several trap doors up ahead. Where were they again. He studied the walls in front of him, the paint on the walls changed patterns whenever a trap door would hide. Once he remembered where they were, he had an easy time getting to the brig. His stomach dropped when he found nothing in the cell. Nothing, to hide not tail of anyone being in here in _years_. Great. He made his way back to the deck with a huge weight in his chest. Link was going to be heartbroken when he found out.

As he walked back up the steps, Linebeck heard voices coming from above. Adrenaline rushed through him as he panicked. Then he recognized the voices that were speaking and his blood ran ice cold. Why? Why was on this ship? Why for the love of the Goddesses, why did get on this ship? And why was he talking to _her_? Oh no. This was bad. This was very, very, very bad. Link alone with her was very, very, very, very bad.

"Who did this to Tetra?" his son's voice sounded distraught.

"She has been cursed. Tetra sacrificed herself for me and was turned to stone." a small female voice replied, her voice attempting to sound sorrowful.

"Up to your old tricks I see." Linebeck sneered as he pressed his sword into her back.

Linebeck could hear the smirk in her voice, "Why if it isn't Linebeck. Long time, no see. You know your friends have really missed you."

She flicked her wrist and a dark mist beagin to swirl around them.

"Link. Get back to the boat. Now." He ordered, trying to hide the panick and fear in his voice.

The mist began to take the shape of men. It settled down in its current form and revealed grotesque zombified beings. The girl turned around and stepped back. Her eyes narrowed and a smile appeared on her lips. The girl's shape also warped and changed. A large and malicious smile grew across her face as her body twisted and transformed into her true form.

Linebeck began to feel woozy and light headded. It reminded him of the curse in the Temple of the Sea King. He took a step towards the girl and swung his blade at her. She merely stepped aside and the blade missed, slicing through the air. His eyes darted to Link who was still standing there, clearly in shock by the sudden turn of events.

"Go!" Linebeck tried to shout, but his voice barely escaped his lips.

The act of holding up his blade became too much for him. His swords clattered to the ground. Moments later his knees began to wobble before giving out on him. He landed on the deck with a thud. He looked up at Link, who was trying to pull out his sword, but that was proving to be too great of a task for him.

"I always wondered why you were always so hard to control Linebeck. My magic never seemed to work in you as easily as it did on the others. But now I see it runs in the family." Her glowing eyes flickered to his son as his legs also gave out on him. "It seemed as though you, like your son are carriers for a great power. Just like _poor Tetra._ My master will certainty be pleased with me."

The wicked monster conjured up a giant crackling ball of light. It eerily illuminated her deranged smile and sent a shiver down Linebeck's spine.

"Now, any last words before you're turned to stone?" She asked.


	18. Rescuing Tetra

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01, The Jester of Magvel for reviewing and supersmach for following. If I left someone out who reviewed or followed before I posted this chapter please tell me and I will add you in, my notifications haven't been working lately.**

His green eyes glared at the fowl monster as her ball of light grew larger. The orb crackled, illuminating the Ghost Ship. Mustering up what strength he had left, he picked up his sword. As quick as lightning, he thrusted his sword at the witch the moment she thew the glowing orb at him. His reflexes kicked in and and whacked the orb, sending it right back at her. The monster's eyes grew wide as the ball of light enveloped her. She let out a retched shriek at hurt Linebeck's ears. At this time, Link was also starting to slowly stand and pull out his sword.

The witch took notice of this turn of events and prepared another blast as she turned towards the boy. No one messed with his son and got away with it. Linebeck thrusted his sword into her back as she threw the ball at Link. She let our a hiss of pain and swung her gnarled arms at the sailor. With amazing reflexes, Link jumped out of the way of the blast and whacked the light orb at the witch's back. Another cry of pain escaped the monster's lips. This time she reeled back, summoning a ball of light three times its normal size. Linebeck prepared to block the shot, when the witch suddenly turned towards Link.

Time seemed to slow down for Linebeck. Link' eyes grew wide as he realized what the witch was doing. There wasn't enough time for him to jump out of the way. Linebeck's eyes widened in horror as the blast of light left left her fingertips. Barley a second had passed before the light grew blinding. It flashes for a moment before disappearing. The light died down revealing a smoking cloak which dropped onto the deck. The second the cloak hit the deck, the zombified crew vanished in a cloud of was a ghostly figure of a young girl floating in front of Link. She was cradling Ceila in her hands. Linebeck could feel his strength returning, but still felt woozy and a tad light headed. His eyes fell upon Link. His blood ran cold and his heart sank like an anchor when he saw him sprawled against the deck.

"No." Linebeck cried out as he rushed towards his son.

He fell on his knees at the sight of his son. He was not encased in stone like Tetra was, but like he was moments before. Link was ice cold, and no longer moving. Linebeck picked him up like he was as fragile as glass and began sobbing.

"Link," His voice quivering, "please wake up. Please-please-please-please."

The ghostly figure looked over at duo with concern. Her vacant eyes closing as she began to glow brighter. Yellow light slowly enveloped the ship. With another blinding flash, she was gone. Her form dissipated like a Link gasp for air and tensed up like he had awoken from a nightmare. Thank Goddesses; he was alright.

"Zelda!" he exclaimed, sounding slightly delirious.

Linebeck squeezed his son tightly, "I thought I told you never to scare me like that again. I thought I lost you. Why?! Why did you come up here!?"

His son's green eyes looked up at him, trying to hide his shame and fear, "I heard someone calling for help. I thought it was another prisoner. I'm sorry." His eyes cast downwards.

"I'm just glad you're safe now." Linebeck said as he gave Link a big hug, "But what was up with that ghost and Ceila? And who is Zelda?"

Link sat up and replied, "Tetra's true form is Princess Zelda." He rubbed the back of his neck, "It's kind of a long story, but I think that's the reason I'm alright."

"That would be one story I would like to hear." came a voice from behind them.

The duo jumped straight into the air as Oshus stood behind them.

"Grandpa! What are you doing here?" Ceila asked.

"More like how did he get here?" Retorted Linebeck.

The old man smiled, "Isn't it obvious?"

His eyes twinkling as they guarded a secret that was so close to getting out.

"You're the Sea King." Link murmured.

"Clever boy. Yes, I am the Sea King. Long ago a terrible creature named Bellum appeared. He began attacking ship's and sea creatures, devouring their life forces. We fought for the longest time, but the foul beast imprisoned me in the depths of the temple. Before he could drain me of my essance I slpit myself into two forms, much like Celia. However, Bellum was unsatisfied by my life force and cursed this ship to bring him helpless souls to drain. It seems as though the three of you possess some power that he can not fully consume. As to what that power is, I do not know. But what I do know is that the Princes Zelda and Celia combined their powers to stop time around Link, thus saving him for the curse."

Link looked down, deep in thought, "It couldn't be... Could it?"

Curiously the sailor looked at Link, "What is it?"

"Do you remember the story of the Hero of Time; and how he worked the power of triforce of courage to save Hyrule and Princes Zelda from Gannon?"

"Yeah. I remember that story. Every time a boy comes of age he dons the Hero's clothes for a day. Supposedly we're related to one of the incarnations of the Hero, but that's just a story." Linebeck replied, somewhat dismissing the story.

"It isn't just a story. We really are related to one of the ancient heroes of Hyrule. Only our family can utilize the triforce of courage. Trust me on this. And Tetra is a reincarnation of Princes Zelda. She possess the power to yeild the triforce of wisdom." Link said.

Oshus stroked his beard intently as he listened to Link speak. The old man thought for a moment, taking everything in.

"It seems as though the power still runs through you protecting you. Power like that is too great for Bellum to control. That is why Bellum sealed Tetra in her present form. Once he is defeated for good, his powers will cease to be and Tetra shall return to normal."

"How do we defeat Bellum?" Ceila asked.

"There is a sword maker in the northwestern area of the sea. He will know of the sword that can defeat Bellum. He might have it in his possession, if not he should have the knowledge to forge such a sword." His old eyes gazed out onto the open sea as he spoke.

"Well, I suppose we should put Tetra on board the boat and head out to the swordmaster's home." Linebeck said as he looked at the petrified girl.

* * *

It had been several days since the encounter with the Ghost Ship. Every so often Link would go below deck and check on Tetra. He always looked so heartbroken whenever he saw her. Link tried to laugh and recount the fun times they had shared, but it would always end up with the boy fighting back tears. It pained Linebeck to see his son that way, especially since his son reminded of himself after his wife had passed. Goddesses, if she was only here, she'd know how to make this better.

One night, as they sat on the deck looking at the stars and keeping an eye out for any hostile ships, Linebeck asked Link how he had met Tetra. Link recounted their meeting and how he had saved her from the Helmaroc King. He then went on about how Aryll had been taken captive and together they searched for her. He had just gotten to the part where he first met Gannon in the Forsaken Fortress when they spotted a dark figure against the stary night. A chill ran down Linebeck's spine when he recognized the silhouette of the ship.

"Link. Hide." Linebeck commanded with absolute terror in his voice.

* * *

 **If you are confused about Zelda appearing, it was one of the things I pulled from the manga. Some more of the manga elements will be appearing as well.**


	19. Pirates

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01, Alanis Strife, and Moonlight Raven Grave for reviewing.  
**

Linebeck's heart was beating like a drum as he told Link to hide and not to come out unless he gave him the all clear. Link protested saying that he could fight if he needed to. This time he played the father card and ordered him to hid. Reluctantly, he listened. As soon as Link disappeared below deck he raced over to the wheel. Oh no. This was bad. Of all the ships to find them, it had to be _that_ ship. Linebeck forced the steam ship to go as fast as it could. Much to Linebeck's dismay the ship was still getting closer. Oh Goddesses, what was he going to do if the ship boarded them. His hand clutched his sword as he turned the engine off. No point in running now. He knew exactly what he was going to do. Linebeck just hoped it would work.

Within minutes the ship was in range to be boarded. Linebeck's heart was beating overtime as three familiar faces jumped on his ship. He pulled out his sword and pointed it at the three pirates. His green eyes narrowed and he prayed that his plan would work.

"Where. Is. The. Boy?" Linebeck demanded, hoping this would deter them for looking for Link.

The first pirate snarled, "Thought I told you he was at the bottom of the ocean."

Out of the shadows came another voice Linebeck did not recognize, "Tsk, tsk, tsk, James. I thought you were a pirate, not a liar."

The figure stepped out of the shadows and stood in front of his men. Every thing about this man was well kempt. Not a single dirty blond hair was out of place on his head. His face was cleanly shaven. The man was dressed his his best scarlet jacket and finest black slacks. A polished sheaf hung on his black belt.

"I apologize on behalf of my crew. It seems as though my crew was not totally honest about their _incursion_ on Mercay Island." His voice grew annoyed as he passive aggressively scolded his crew.

"They told me that they were attacked by someone looking into purchasing the boy, and that when told the price for the lad, he proceeded to attack my crew. And they never once mentioned the fact that they threatened or mentioned threats about the boy's well being. Or that he belonged to _a living crew_. My crew told me he was _abandoned_." again the man's voice grew annoyed.

Linebeck was absolutely stunned. This was going a lot better than he expected. He lowered his sword as the pirate captain spoke. The man seemed to not want any hostility. It might be best to put away his sword to avoid any more conflict."

The man recomposed himself and continued, "My men's action's were unforgivable. While I am a pirate, I think of myself as an honest one. And I assure you, that if you had come to me in the first place, we could have worked something out. I too understand your devotion to your crew. That is why I apologize for having to do this."

His blue eyes went ice cold and he snapped his fingers. Moments later Linebeck was seized by four strong hands. So much for things going better than expected.

"You see I would have let the boy go if you had approached me. But instead you attack my crew. Again, I don't condone their lying, but they are still my crew. And as you can relate, when someone attacks or hurt your crew, you attack or hurt them. There is an old saying, an eye for an eye." The pirate captain explained as he handed his jacket to the third pirate.

The pirate rolled up his sleeves and stepped over to the sailor. A sharp pain kissed his jaw as he was hit by the pirate. Linebeck let out a cry as he felt a solid punch to the stomach. He gasped for air, only to have it knocked out of him with another punch to the gut. A punch to the face sent stars dancing in his thought he heard ringing in his ears as another blow landed on his jaw. Seconds later he had a metallic taste in his mouth. He spat out a mouthful of blood. Linebeck hissed in pain and a fist kissed his nose. He heard a small crunch and something run out of his nose. He screamed out in pain as he heard his shoulder pop out of place, as the men jostled him around. Seconds later Linebeck's eyes rolled back, his legs gave out and he cried out in pain as a swift kick met between his legs. For a moment he thought he was going to be sick. He felt the grip of the men let go as he collapsed on the deck, writhing in pain. Another swift kick met him, however this time it met his ribs. He was in so much pain he thought that he was going to pass out. With one more kick to the stomach, the pirate captain turned on his heals and signaled for his men to follow him. He spit out a mouthful of blood as the pirate ship sailed away.

The battered man lay there for a few moments laying in pain. His head was pounding. Goddesses, was he in a world of hurt right now. Every inch of his body ached and burned. But he silently thanked the Goddesses that Link was safe in the cargo hold and that they hadn't discovered him. He shuddered at the thought of what could have happened if they knew he was on the ship.

His stomach clenched as he hoped that Link hadn't heard him cry out in pain. Who knew what that would do to the boy? With what energy he could muster he crawled over to the doorway to the cabins and sat up against the wall. Just as he was about to call Link out from hiding, he let the back of his head hit the back of the wall in frustration as he saw another ship approach them. He let out a groan of pure frustration. Of all the rotten luck. It hadn't been ten minutes, _ten minutes_ since the last set of pirates left when Joline decided to join the after party.

The she pirate's ship sailed up smoothly and quietly up to his ship. Gracefully like a cat, a lone figure leaped aboard his ship. She drew her sword out and pointed it at the beaten man. Her dark brown eyes looked him over skeptically as if this was some trick he was trying to pull.

Jolene's dark brown eyes gazed over the bloodied deck before she asked coldly, "What happened here Linebeck?"

"People are just jealous. They see my handsome face and have to challenge me." Linebeck responded dryly.

"Still the same as ever, eh, Linebeck." She said as she rolled her eyes. A small smile hid at the corner of her lips.

"So, what's this talk about you being mad at me?" Linebeck asked sounding exasperated and exhausted.

He winced as he tried to sit up more. A shooting pain rushed through him as he forgot that his right shoulder was now dislocated. Jolene's eyebrow raised in curiosity at the man's injury.

"You left. In the middle of the night, without saying a word." the woman replied bitterly. She thrusted her sword at the poor man illustrating her anger.

"That's why your mad? Please tell me you aren't going to kill me over that? At least let me tell you _why_ I left before you skewer me." Linebeck asked sounding a bit irritated at the whole situation.

Linebeck had gone through enough today. He had been beaten to the point of almost blacking out, his whole body ached, his arm would not stop reminding him that it was now out of place, and now he was going to be impaled by a crazy women because he left her ship.

Jolene let out an annoyed huff, "Yes, that's why I'm mad." She looked at him like he had gone crazy, " Do you really think I was going to kill you for that?"

Jolene rolled her brown eyes and lowered her sword. A second later she reluctantly put it away as if to illustrate her point. She brushed a stray lock of dark hair from from her face and looked back down at the injured man.

"Well, Markus made it seemed like you were out for my head." the captain dully replied.

The she pirate scoffed, "Well Markus isn't the sharpest sword in the armory. But that's besides the point. Why did you leave Linebeck?"

Her brown eyes burned holes into Linebeck. There was a moment of silence. The two gazed at each other. Their brief history, was now an array of awkward and painful memories that hung between them.

"Will you at least help me up and," Linebeck grabbed at his injured shoulder and winced, "help me get my shoulder back into place first?"

Jolene held out her hand, which Linebeck accepted. With a quick tug, the captain was back on his feet.

She grabbed a hold of his arm and said under her breath, "This is going to hurt."

Linebeck rolled his eyes, "I kn-"

With a single quick motion, Jolene jerked at his arm. His shoulder let out a loud audible pop. A small cry of pain escaped his lips.

"That's more like it." the older man said as he rotated his arm as he quietly chucked in victory.

His arm still had a burning pain, but it was nothing like it was. At least he could move it with minimal pain. His fingers massaged at his shoulder as he worked the muscles back into place.

"Alright, you're up, your arm is fixed, and you owe me an explanation." She crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently.

"Hold your horses will you." Linebeck replied with an annoyed look. He leaned around the corner and shouted down the stairs, "All clear Link. You can come out." Linebeck hesitated for a moment remembering his injuries; he didn't want Link to see him like this, so he added, "It's late. Head on to bed."

"Link? Who's Link?" the woman asked.

As if on cue, the boy rushed up the stairs. A look of defiance on his face.

"I want to know what that was all about first." Link demanded, and then he noticed a shocked Jolene standing beside his father. "And who's she?" He asked.

"Link, please go to bed." Linebeck begged as he hoped he didn't see his sorry state.

Unfortunately, Link noticed the blood that covered the front of Linebeck. His eyes grew wide with worry and shock.

"Dad?" Link asked, his voice full of concern.

Linebeck sighed, "I'm fine Link."

" _Dad_?" Jolene repeated sounding very confused.

"Yeah. He's my son. That's why I left. I needed to find a way back home." the captain explained rubbing the back of his neck with his good arm.

The woman's face grew a little red, "Oh. I though you were just homesick. I had no idea you had a kid waiting for you. To be honest, I thought you left because you hated me."

Linebeck's eyes grew wide, "No. I had to kids that I needed to get back to. Why would you think that I hated you?"

"Wait, you have _kids?_ As in multiple kids?" asked the she pirate sounding surpirsed. She then looked him over for a second before adding "I never thought of you as a laddies man Linebeck. After all you never seemed to notice me."

"No! I was married!" replied Linebeck sounding exasperated.

"How was I supposed to know?! I never saw a ring on your finger!" Jolene sounded frustrated.

Linebeck pulled out the chain that held his ring. It's gold tint reflected in the moonlight.

"I'm a widower. With two kids." explained Linebeck.

" _Oh_ , that explains a lot." Jolene looked down, her voice sounding sheepish.

Her cheeks grew even more red. Linebeck took note and looked cocked his head. Link looked back and forth between the squalling couple, trying to figure everything out.

"You liked my dad, didn't you?" Link asked.

Jolene seemed to become flustered. "Well, yeah."

"I'm sorry Jolene. I shouldn't have left without saying anything. It was wrong of me." He paused for a moment.

The two of them looked at each other for a moment. Regret of what could have been hung in the air.

"I had no idea you liked me that way. Even still, I haven't completely moved on. And as of right now, my kids come first. And I need to help my son and save his friend." Linebeck placed a hand on his son's shoulder.

Jolene brushed another strand of hair from her face. Her brown eyes still filled with regret, but now held a sense of peace and closure.

"That's understandable." she spoke with a small smile on her lips, "Maybe someday we can meet on better terms eh."

With that she turned and leaped back onto her ship. It pulled away quickly leaving father and son alone on the deck.

"Well that was weird." Link sated bluntly and gestured to Linebeck's injuries, "Please tell me she didn't do that to you."

He lout out a long huff of air before replying, "Nope. It was the pirates from Mercay Island." He rubbed at his sore jaw before continuing, "Their captain wasn't pleased with how I handled your kidnapping. But it's in the past now. Come on, let's get you to bed."

His that he escorted to Link to his room. Once that was done, he stiffly made his way back up the stairs and into his room. He grabbed out a clean cloth and began wiping the dried blood off his face. Linebeck winced as he cracked his broken nose into place. He poured himself a glass of purple potion and gulped the whole thing down in one go. He changed out of his bloodied clothes, plopped down on his bed, and let sleep take him.


	20. The Sword Maker

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01, HyruleHearts1123, Moonlight Raven Grave, It'sJustAKindOfMagic for reviewing, and to fog of the cat for following.  
**

 **You guys really seem divided on Jolene and how much she should be included. I was just annoyed with how many times I had to fight her. I don't know if I will include her any more in this story. I'm also thinking about doing a one-shot series about Linebeck and Link after this, so if you have any ideas for that or this story, please tell me. Also, since Link isphysically growing through this series, and at the end of the game "it was only ten minutes" should Link revert back to his beginning state or stay aged?  
**

After their brush with the pirates, things were going a lot better for the sailors. Linebeck's shoulder was even starting to feel like normal, although it was still a little stiff. Things were starting to go back normal between the two. As they explored the vast ocean, Linebeck recanted old stories about growing up on Outset Island. Link rolled his eyes at their antics and continued snacking on his apple. He stopped munching on his apple and got a weird look on his face. Link stuck a finger in his mouth an wiggled it around.

"What's wrong?" Linebeck asked, not sure what his son was doing.

Link took the finger out of his mouth and replied, "My tooth is loose."

Wow, he had missed so much. It seem that long ago that he had finally been big enough to climb the ladder to his room without his mother worrying about him falling off. Now he was loosing the last of his teeth. It wouldn't be too much longer before he was going to have to teach him how to shave. Time had gone by too fast in this strange world.

"Please stop getting older. That means that I'm getting older. And I don't think I can handle it." Linebeck sighed dramatically, causing Link to giggle. "Ugh, Goddesses help me, I'm going to have to deal with a _teenager_ soon." Linebeck replied as he shook his head.

Link laughed, "I can't help it. You're just going to have to deal with it."

"Well you're going to have to figure out a way to stop it." Linebeck teased, "Besides, I'm not ready to give you the talk yet."

Once again Linebeck shook his head. He mumbled something under his breath but Link couldn't catch it.

Link cocked his head to the side and repeated, "The talk?"

"Never mind." Linebeck dismissed.

Link shrugged and went back to munching on his apple. Linebeck went on to tell Link how his mother convinced him to knock down a hornet's nest because she thought it had honey in it and how badly it ended for the two of them.

* * *

They had been at sea for three days before sighting an uncharted island. Hopefully, this was the island they were looking for. The ship pulled up to the dock, and Link and Linebeck tied off the ship. There was a lone hut on the island. Together, Link and Linebeck approached the lonely house. Inside was a red headed man leaning over a roaring forge. His hammer was pounding at a burning red piece of metal. He worked at it until the scarlet glow began to dissipate. Once the metal was back to is normal color, he turned around to face his guests.

"I've been expecting you." The man said warmly.

"Did Grandpa tell you we were coming?" Asked Ceila.

"Yes, he did. My people have served the Ocean King for centuries. We forged the blades that defeated great evils that threatened our beloved ocean and her king. The blade of which you seek was called the Phantom Sword." Answers the sword smith.

"Was? What happened to the sword?" Asked Link.

"It has been lost to the sands of time. But I know how to forge another like it. I just need the materials for it," he explained as he began to dig through a chest, "The Sea King gifted three tribes with the pure metals necessary to forge the blade. These sea charts mark the location of two of the three materials. The last chart lays hidden at the bottom of the temple."

"But Link and I have explored every inch of the temple." Stated Celia I defeat.

"Fear not, young spirit. Do you remember the door that required a symbol to open?" Asked the man.

Celia nodded and he continued, "There is another symbol that will allow you to enter another area of the temple."

"What's the symbol?" Link asked.

"You should know. Your ancestors fought to protect such a relic. You yourself served as a vessel for a part of it, in multiple reincarnations, mind you." The man replied cryptically.

"The Triforce? But I thought this world had nothing to do with our own?" Link asked.

"It is a long story, if you wish to hear it." The man stated as the forge began to die down.

"I don't know about you, but I'm curious." Linebeck said as he looked at Link.

Link nodded, "I want to hear the story too."

"Take a seat." The man offered before continuing, "Well, our worlds were at one point in time, one in the same. There has always been a Princes Zelda who embodies the Triforce of Wisdom and is the spirit of the goddess Hylia in human form. There has always been a Link who always embodies the Triforce of Courage and spirit of the Hylia's chosen hero. Both of these embodiments carry on through their bloodlines to be reborn. However, the Triforce of power became embodied in an evil entity named Demise. Upon his defeat he cursed the bloodlines of the original Zelda and Link so that their descendents will always have to fight an incarnation of evil itself. There would always be a Princes Zelda, an evil entity that would seek power, and a Link that would save the kingdom of Hyrule. For generations the cycle repeated itself.

But when your most recent past life, the Hero of Time, defeated Ganon, it caused a tear in time. That tear created, from what my people understand, three distinct worlds. This, my people learned from talking to the souls spirited away by the Ghost Ship. Their stories each have their own versions of what befell the Hero of Time. In one world, the Hero of Time perished at the hands of Ganon. But in our worlds, the hero of time was victorious. The Hero of Time was sealed in the Temple of Time for seven years until he was strong enough to defeat Ganon. After his defeat, the Princess Zelda, sent him back in time to relieve his lost years.

Here is where our worlds differ, when the Hero of Time was sent back to his childhood, he left Hyrule to seek his companion Navi. In his search, he stumbled upon the land named Termina, which resigns to this world. He saved it from the wrath of Majora, an evil entity sealed away in a cursed mask. And prevented Majora from bringing down the moon and destroying the world. Here, the Hero of Time resided until his death. But in your world, while the hero still stayed sealed in the temple to grow and defeat Ganon, he no longer existed in the timeline after his defeat of Ganon. Hyrule was then flooded and became the world you know as your home. Now, I suggest you start with Goron Island. Their people know the Hero of Hyrule's story well. They should be more than willing to assist his current reincarnation."


	21. Baby Teeth

**Sorry it's been a while, I've had major writer's block for this chapter. I've rewritten this several times and still not the happiest with it. Also tell me if you want to see something in this story or the one-shot sequel.  
**

 **Thank you to Eeve on the Move and SolfaK for following, to Link Fangirl01 and Moonlight Raven Grave for reviewing, and kariset for favoriting the story.**

After they had collected the sea charts and walked back to the boat. Once they were on board, they headed for the captain's quarters and compared their old charts with the new ones. It looked like the journey to Goron Island would take about a week and a half if they used the magic slate. With their diminishing supplies, they decided to head back to Mercay Island. Maybe they'd even grab the remaining chart while they were there. Besides, Link was growing like a weed. It had only been three and a half weeks, but he was getting close to outgrowing the clothes they just bought. Fortunately, they were still had enough room to grow into. Oh the joys of having a child who was starting to enter puberty. At this rate, Link would be getting the talk sooner rather than later.

* * *

They had been sailing for three days, with Mercay Island almost in sight. The seagulls were squawking over head, as they flew circles around the boat. The occasional fish would leap out of the water, scaring a seagull with its splashing. Link had been thinking a lot and had been quieter than usual since visiting the sword maker. Linebeck figured it was best to let his son mull things over on his own. Link was leaning on the railing, his head laying on his arms.

"I still think it's weird that I'm a reincarnation of half my relatives." Link muttered as he looked out at the sea.

The sounds of the sea filled the silence between the two. Linebeck thought for a moment. Their family history was an unusual one. The fact that his son was constantly reincarnated in his own family was a strange phenomenon, he had to admit.

"It is strange, isn't it? But I guess that's what happens when your family is forever cursed by an entity of pure evil." Linebeck shrugged before going back to steering the ship.

"Thanks dad." deadpanned Link as he looked over at the older man

Linebeck rolled his eyes and gave his son a smile and rustled his hair. Link scrunched up his face, fixed his hair, and went back to gazing at the sea. The familiar island began to grow in size in the distance.

"Land ho." Linebeck muttered under his breath.

Link brought his head from his arms and looked over to the island. Without saying a word he rushed downstairs. He came up minutes later with their supply list. He folded it up and set it in his light blue waist coat pocket. Now all they had to do was pull into port and they'd be all set for their supply run.

* * *

"Alright, we got our supplies all put away, what now?" Linebeck asked as he shoved the last crate in its place.

Link thought for a moment. He contemplated the best course of action for a few seconds.

"I might run through the Temple of the Ocean King while we're here. I don't know how long it will take though, Celia and I will be exploring an area we've never been to." Link replied thoughtfully.

"Do you have everything you need for the temple?" Linebeck asked.

The blond nodded and riffled through his bag, "Yep. I've got my maps, sword, boomerang, bomb bag, and the Phantom Hourglass."

"Alright. I'll leave you two to it. I have to pick up a few more things, but I'll meet you back at the temple as soon as I'm done." The older man said as he tussled his son's hair.

"See ya dad." Link replied as he took off towards the cursed temple.

Linebeck walked back into town alone. Fear for Link's safety gnawed at the back of his mind the entire way. But he had something he needed to do. He opened the door to the familiar shop. The shopkeeper gave her usual smile to the duo as he entered. She was currently rifling through a shelf of pants. She smiled victoriously as she found the pair of pants she was looking for.

The shopkeeper said as she flung the pants over the door to the changing room, "They're a size smaller, let me know which one's fit more comfortably." She then turned towards the two guys with a smile, "Let me guess, you went through another one of your growth spurts."

She looked around looking for the boy, "Where is he?"

"He's out running around. But he's growing like a weed with no signs of stopping." Linebeck muttered, "Fortunately, most of his clothes still have room to grow into. But I'm looking for something more specific this time."

"Oh, well if you need help, just let me know." the shopkeeper said as she turned back to a pile of clothes.

Linebeck walked around the store hunting for a set of green clothing. Link was still very fond of the Linebeckesque outfit. It was partially due to the fact that the shirt and waist coat was a lot cooler than the heavy green clothing. He really couldn't blame him, he shuddered at the memories of his time wearing the outfit. It was the hottest clothing he had ever worn. But maybe they would have an easier time acquiring the metals if he was dressed in an outfit that resembled the hero's clothes. Hmm, okay well there's a green undershirt. Does she have a green waist coat? Ah ha, she does. Now for white pants. What else does his outfit need? A belt, his still fits him. Looks like they have everything.

After he paid for the outfit he walked back towards the temple. It was quiet for most of the way. But the sound of the waves lapping up against the island kept him company. Soon enough the eerie temple loomed overhead. Linebeck walked up towards the entrance and sat down, waiting for his son to exit. His timing was almost perfect. Link walked out with a large smile on his face and a chart in his hand.

"Alright, got the last chart. Let's head out to Goron Island." the boy said smiling.

Linebeck stood up and the two walked back to the ship.

* * *

They had sailed for a good five hours before the sun dipped below the horizon. Link had been furiously messing with his loose tooth for a good hour and a half. He twisted and yanked on it with no avail.

"It'll come out on its own." Linebeck muttered as he heard the boy wince in pain.

"But it's really loose now and won't come out." Link complained.

He suddenly winced again as he tried to yank his tooth again. His finger wiggled the tooth around even more vigorously now. Linebeck rolled his eyes and walked over to his son an inspected the loose tooth.

"Hmm, it is pretty loose, isn't it." He smiled remembering a long forgotten memory. "The same thing happened to your mother when she was little. We tried _everything_. We tried tying a string around her tooth and. The other end to a doorknob." He rubbed his neck and winced, "That didn't end so well. But we eventually got it out."

"How'd you get the tooth out then?" Link asked and then continued messing with his tooth.

"Like this." Linebeck simply stated.

He quickly reached in Link's mouth and grasped the tooth with his thumb and index finger. He pinched his shoulder with his free hand and twisted the tooth out. Link let out a small cry when he felt the pinch on his arm.

"Ow! Why did you pinch me? " he asked rubbing his arm.

"To distract you from this." The sailor smiled and held up a tooth and placed it in the boy's hand.

Link blinked up at him in surprise and back down to the tooth in his hand. A second later he felt around in his mouth to find a hole where his tooth had once been.

"Come on, let's get you some salt water to swish around. It will stop the bleeding." He placed a hand on his son's shoulder and walked him towards the stairs


	22. Goron Island

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01 and Moonlight Raven Grave for reviewing. I'm sorry if you reviewed, followed, or favorited and I didn't mention it. Fanfic has been having traffic issues so I can't see if you guys have read what I've posted, some comments won't show up, along with the followers and people who favorite. Currently it says chapter 21 has 0 views, but I have 2 reviews so that can't be right. Oh well, I'm really excited for the next couple of chapters.  
**

Goron Island came into sight early in the morning. The sun had barley risen above the water by the time the island was the size of a fist on the horizon. Link rushed down to his room and changed out of his regular clothing. He came up dressed in a light green button up undershirt, a darker green waist coat, white pants, and his belt.

"This is so much better than the Hero's clothing I started out in. It's nice and light." Link stated as he stood beside his father.

"Yeah, I bet. I hated wearing that. All I can remember from my twelfth birthday was how hot that thing was." Linebeck commented and shuddered at the memory.

He tussled Link's hair and set the green hat on his head. Link gave him a slightly annoyed look, but his smile told Linebeck that he wasn't mad. Link was just about to give off a smart Alec remark when a giant sea creature erupted from the ocean. Water cascaded down off of the giant whale like creature and onto the boat as it took to the sky. Linebeck's sumach lurched when he heard the sound of the engine sputtering to a sudden halt.

"Looks like the engine's flooded, and at the worst time too." Linebeck said with narrowed eyes. "Link! Ready the cannon!"

Link gave his father a nod and rushed towards the cannon. He pulled out the cannon and aimed it at the whale like monster. Link fired at it, sending a blow to one of the creature's many eyes. Without much warning the creature threw a yellow ball of light at them. Acting quickly, Linebeck dove for his son. The blast barley went over them, he could feel the crackling energy fly by them and hit a railing post. They quickly got up to their feet and loaded the cannon. Together they fired a nonstop barrage of cannon fire. The creature wailed in pain as the cannon balls collided with the monster. It fired off one more blast, which didn't come close to hitting the boat, before it sank into the water with a massive title wave. The boat rocked back and forth as the sea began to calm back down. Now, all they had to do was wait for the engine to dry out so they could head towards Goron Island.

* * *

After what felt like ages, the engine was finally able to start back up. With just another hour of sailing, they were able to dock on the strange island. Together they explored the island. They ran into a Goron who had seen the fight off the coat of the island. He was impressed of their bravery and informed them that if they wanted the metals, they would need to seek out Chief Biggoron who lived in a large cave on the other side of the island. They thanked him and made their way to the other side of the island. They entered the large cave to find two Gorons sitting in the center of the room. The one sitting in a throne was an older Goron, and the one sitting by his side was a younger one. A smile appeared on the older Goron's face when he saw Link.

The Goron leader spoke, his voice boomed throughout the room, "Ah, so the hero returns. My people have wondered when you would return to our people. It is a great honor to be in your presence. I have heard that you seek out the sacred metals bestowed by the Ocean King."

Link bowed and replied as the words flowed like a river, "It is an honor to return to such a kind people. I regret that I have had to return under these circumstances. But I must stop Bellum and his wicked hold over the Ocean King. I ask of you to release enough of your precious metals to forge another Phantom Blade."

"I see that you are the hero reborn. But only Gorons are permitted to posses the metal you seek." Biggoron said.

Link's shoulder's slumped with defeat.

The chief noticed the look of defeat on Link's face and continued, "In past lives you have been a brother in the eyes of the Gorons, because of this you will always be considered a brother. But first you must reconnect with your brothers and sisters in this life before you may enter. Once you have talked to them, I will reinitiate you into our tribe. Then, I will allow you to enter the sacred temple and allow you some of our precious metals."

Link smiled and bowed again, "Thank you Chief Biggoron. I shall return soon."

* * *

Together they ran around the island talking to all the Gorons on the island. The duo talked to a few Gorons who told them interesting things about the island. They had just set up a little store on the island and they were eager to tell everyone about such an amazing thing that having a store on the island was. One Goron even talked about how he dreamed of building his own boat and sailing the open seas. During their search for all the Gorons, they ran into a poor Goron surrounded by yellow chuchus. Link threw his boomerang and they disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The Goron thanked them for their assistance. Now that they had talked with all the Gorons, they could head back to the Chief's cave. He smiled at them once again as they entered the cave.

"I see you have reconnected with your tribe. Now, to be reinstated you must answer six questions. Are you ready?" Chief Biggoron asked. Link nodded in reply and Chief Biggoron continued, "First question: How many Gorons live on the island?"

"Fourteen." answered Link

Biggoron smiled, "Good. Next question: How many children are on this island?"

Link hesitated, mulling over the question. There were two possible answers to this question, depending on what answer the Chief wanted, "Six, if I'm not including myself."

The Chief smiled at the answer, "Wise answer my friend. How many homes are on this island?"

"Six." he replied.

"That it right. How many rocks were in Dasgoron's home?"

Link thought for a second before answering, "Three, I believe."

"Correct. Which question number is this?" Biggoron quizzed.

The boy ran through the questions real quick before coming up with an answer, "Five."

"Good. Last question. The creatures that you destroyed, what color were they?" the Goron leader asked.

"Yellow sir." Link replied.

"You have done well. My son Gongoron, will show you the way to the metal that you seek." He looked over at his son who sat beside him.

He bowed to his father before turning to the young hero and lightly teased, "Right this way. Keep up, if you can."

Link raced after the young Goron. Linebeck smiled at the kids' antics. He thanked the Goron Chief and walked back to his ship. Linebeck waited back at the ship for Link to return. It took him about an hour, but he returned with the metal in hand and a smile on his face. Once the metal was secure in the cargo hold, they planned out the next leg of their journey. It looked like the Isle of Frost was going to be their next stop.


	23. Isle of Frost

**I still can't see any traffic on this story so I don't know if there were any reviews, comments, or followers added since last time. But now onto the part of the story I was most looking forward to.**

The air was absolutely frigged, and they were still a good ways away from the island. Their breath hung in the air and danced around them before disappearing into the chilly air. Linebeck wrapped his jacket around himself tighter as the icy air nipped at him. He rubbed his hands together to loosen up his stiff fingers.

His green eyes glanced over at Link who was huddled over. Seeing this, he escorted his son into his captain's quarters and light a fire. Within minutes the crackling fire flooded the room with warmth. Satisfied with the fire, he tussled Link's hair before venturing back outside to take a hold of the wheel.

After what felt like an eternity, the boat coasted up into the docks. Linebeck struggled with the semi-frozen rope as be tried to tie off the boat. Eventually the rope gave in and allowed itself to be tied around the post. He ducked into the cabin and told Link that they were ready to explore the island. The boy stood up and put out the dying fire before leaving.

Their whole bodies shivered as they walked along the tundra. They asked the first native they saw if they knew where the sacred metal was. He shrugged and said be bad no idea. But he suggested they go to the Chef's hut. They continued on and eventually found the Chef's hut. Linebeck hoped that they didn't have to do too much more running around in the freezing air.

When they entered the hut they were developed by the warms of a raging fire in the fire place. The Chief looked up at his visitors in a bit of surprise.

"Pardon my surprise. We have been invaded by our tribe's enemy the Yook in recent days. One of them has even disguised themselves as one of our own. We managed to sort the issue out, but one can not be two careful. But enough about my troubles, what brings you to our secluded island?" The Chief asked.

Link bowed before stating, "We have been sent by the Ocean King to collect enough of the sacred metal to forge another Phantom Blade. Bellum is returning to power and must be defeated."

The chief stroked his beard thoughtfully before replying, "We owe the Ocean King much. I will allow you passage into the Temple of Ice. You must navigate through the passage to the north. There you will find the temple. But do not stray from the path, for the Yook do not like trespassers on their land."

Link bowed again, "Thank you."

With that they headed back out into the chilly air. The wind kissed at their cheeks and noses leaving them cherry red. After what felt like an eternity, the entrance to the temple was upon them. They entered into the first area of the temple. It shielded them from the harsh air. It was still cold, but not nearly as bad as it was outside.

"We'll be right back. It shouldn't take too long. I'll send Celia back out if we run into too much trouble." Link said as he walked towards the inner workings of the temple.

"Be safe. I'll be right out here." Linebeck replied as he leaned against the cold wall.

* * *

An hour had passed and Linebeck's stomach began twisting itself into knots. As if to calm his nerves A blue circle began to glow on the floor near the entrance of the temple. Seconds later, it began to take the form of a person. The blue glow dissipated and revealed a sopping wet and shivering Link. He stepped forward and winced. A moment later he crashed down to the ground and grasped at his ankle. Instantly, Linebeck rushed over to his son. His lips looked dark blue and curled into a small smile. His green eyes drooped like he was fighting sleep.

"Goddesses Link, what happened?! You're absolutely _soaked._ " He asked, his voice filled with worry as he felt how damp his jacket was.

" _I-I-I g-g-go-ot-t-t th-th-e m-me-m-e-met-t-t-metal._ " Link managed to chatter out with a weak and delirious smile on his blue lips.

"Link was fighting this two headed dragon. He had to jump up to avoid it splashing him with icy water, but he hurt his ankle and fell into the water." Celia explained, her voice trying to hide to worry as she buzzed around the guys.

His son looked down at himself. Confusion and delirium flashed across his face as if something wasn't adding up. His shaking fingers fumbled with the cloth on his jacket. Link slowly blinked again, as if trying to piece everything together. Emerald eyes looked up at his father and back down to his jacket.

"H-h-huh, I-I-I a-am w-w-w-wet-t-t." Link managed to say between chattering teeth.

This was not good, not good at all. He had to get Link warmed up and fast. Without hesitation Linebeck peeled of Link's soaked jacket and waist coat. He threw his own jacket over his son and picked him up. Moments later they were rushing through the frigged and harsh air. The sailor pressed his son up against his chest as he ran, trying to warm him up with what body heat he had. He had to get him back on the ship and warmed up. In his short time in his wet clothes, Link was already showing symptoms of severe hypothermia. Goddesses help him if he was too late. He would never be able to forgive himself if... if...His vision began to blur as tears began to prick up around the corners of his eyes. No...no! he wasn't going to loose Link. He couldn't-wouldn't. The sailor forced himself to run faster, and fought his body's protests.

Linebeck almost slipped on the icy dock, but quickly regained his footing. He threw open the door to his room and set a semiconscious Link down in a chair. His cold fingers fumbled with a tinder box as he tried to light a fire. After a few taxing seconds, a roaring fire came to life in the fireplace and started to fill the room up with its warmth. Linebeck looked back and noticed Link fighting sleep. His head was drooping down and jerking up as he tried not to sub come to wasn't good. He dashed over to his side and gently shook him.

"Link." He said, his voice cracking with emotion, "Stay awake."

The blond looked up at him with a muddled expression on his face. It was like what he said had barely registered him his frozen mind. His breathing had become shallow and more frequent.

" _But'mso tired."_ His voice was slurred as he spoke.

Linebeck gently asked as he lightly shook him again, "Come on Link. Can you stay awake for me?"

This time his words seemed to register in the child's head. The boy gave him a small nod with a smile to accompany it. But his eyes still droop down. Seeing Link like this made a part of his heart break. It brought back painful memories that he had to shove away for Link's sake.

He turned to Celia and asked, "Celia, will you keep Link awake? I need to get him a change of clothes and something warm for him to drink."

The fairy nodded. She began talking to Link and prodded at the boy, trying to keep him awake. Linebeck rushed back out into the frosty air and down into the cabin. He ran into Link's room and scavenged for warm clothes. Once he had a change of clothes he dashed back into the hallway and went to the kitchen. He grabbed the kettle, a mug, and a bag of coffee. Maybe the coffee might help him stay awake. After that he ran up the stairs and into his room.

It took Link a few moments to register what happened before he turned towards Linebeck. He set the change of clothes down beside the delirious boy and began peeling off the soaked clothes. Once he was out of the wet clothes, Linebeck quickly dressed him in layers of clothes. He was met with a look of perplexity when he found himself in layers of warm clothing. Once he was layered up, the sailor grabbed a heavy blanket and wrapped it around his son. Again, Link gave him a look of utter confusion. Linebeck set the kettle over the fireplace to get the coffee ready. He looked back to check on his son and noticed that he started to remove the blanket and the top layer of shirts.

He placed his hands over Link's to stop him and quietly said, "No Link. You need to warm up."

The boy slumped his shoulders in frustration. He huffed and gave him an infuriated look. He tried to pry his small hands free, but Linebeck still had a firm grip on them.

" _But_ _'mfine_." his slurred words held frustration.

Linebeck sighed, "No, you aren't."

He covered Link back up with the blanket. Linebeck then picked up the boy, sat down in the chair with Link sitting in his lap and wrapped his arms around him. He wrapped his arms around so Link couldn't wrestle out of the warm embrace. His son protested in delusional grunts and mumbles but eventually gave in and leaned back into his father. They sat like that for a while until the kettle began to whistle. The captain stood up, set Link back down on the chair, and turned back towards the coffee. It was ready and he poured the warm liquid into a mug, loaded it up with a bunch of sugar and handed it to his son.

"Here. Drink this. It will warm you up and help you stay awake" he pleaded.

Link wearily looked between him and the drink. After a moment of hesitation he took a sip of the dark liquid. His eyes widened and he almost spit it out. It looked like he had to force himself to swallow the drink.

The sailor chuckled quietly, "Yeah, it is pretty different isn't it."

His son nodded and continued drinking the warm liquid. It took him a while but he had managed to consume the hot drink. Slowly it seemed as though Link was finally starting to realize what was going on. Once he had finished it off he set the mug down on a side table. Linebeck walked over to the child. He placed his hand on the boy's forehead. It was finally warming back up. Speaking of which, he should probably tend to the fire. The sailor prodded the fire, giving it new life as sparks flew up into the chimney.

"Is your ankle still hurting?" He asked, remembering Link falling to the ground earlier.

The boy thought for a moment before slowly nodding. It seemed like the frozen barrier around his mind was slowly melting away.

"It still hurts." he replied, his voice sounded small, but his words were no longer slurred.

Linebeck stood back up and walked over to the supply cabinet. He pulled out a wrap and walked back over to the boy. Carefully he wrapped the cloth around his ankle and tied it securely.

"Better?" he quietly asked once the bandage was in place.

Link nodded in response. His green eyes still drooped down as he fought to stay awake. He pressed his hand back up to his son's forehead. It felt warm like it usually did. He was probably warmed up enough to sleep without issue.

Linebeck asked the sleepy boy, "You're still tired aren't you?"

"Yeah. Can I sleep now?" his voice was tiny and filled with exhaustion.

"Yes. You should be fine now. Come here." Linebeck said as he picked him up.

He walked over with Link in his arms and set him down on the bed. The instant his head hit the pillow, his green eyes fought to stay open.

"Dad?" Link asked quietly.

"Yes," Linebeck replied as he threw a log onto the fire.

His voice was so quiet, Linebeck barely heard it, "Would you stay beside me? You're really warm."

"Sure." he warmly replied as he walked back over to the bed.

Linebeck covered him up with another blanket before sitting beside his son. Link shifted and pressed himself up against the older man and rested his head against his chest. The sailor wrapped his arms around the drowsy boy. Link's breathing deepened as he drifted asleep. Linebeck brushed a lock of blond hair from his son's face. He frowned when he felt how hot his forehead was getting. Linebeck really hoped that Link wasn't going to get sick.


	24. Fever

**Thank you to Link Fangirl01 for reviewing and to** **Crynathoris for favoriting.**

Linebeck was awoken by the prodding to the face by a certain fairy. His first instinct was to brush her off, but she still protested. The sailor rubbed the sleep from his eyes and glared at the fairy, wondering what was so important that she had to wake him up.

"I thought you ought to know that the fire is going out." Celia stated.

His green eyes looked over to the fireplace. Hmm, so it was dying. Linebeck felt a sudden shift beside him as Link tossed in his sleep. He pressed his hand on the boy's forehead. His hand recoiled at the intensity of the heat. This wasn't good. The poor boy had come down with a wicked fever. He'd have to bring it down somehow. But a freezing room was not going to help matters. Carefully, the older man wormed his way out of bed, as not to wake the sleeping child.

He walked over to the fireplace and poked at the cinders. The embers began to glow brighter as they drank in the new air. After a bit more prodding, small flame erupted and Linebecl set another couple of logs into the fire. Satisfied with his work, the sailor turned back to the sleeping child. Link's cheeks were bright red and a small later of sweat began to coat his face. He pressed his hand up against his forehead again to make sure he wasn't mistaken earlier. A frown crept across his lips. Link was indeed burning up. And his fever was a lot worse than when he had the coucco pox. A pang of worry rushed though him. He hoped his fever would go down soon. Maybe he should help it along.

The sailor grabbed a bucket and walked out into the chilly air. His breath danced around as he wiped excess snow off the roof of the boat into the bucket. Once he was satisfied, he walked back inside the warm room. He poured some water into the snow covered bucket and grabbed out a rag. After he dipped it into the icy water, he wrung it out and placed it on Link's forehead. Maybe removing a few layers of the extra clothing might help in cooling Link down. It should probably wait until Link wakes up though. He needed every bit of rest his poor body could get.

Slowly, the boy's eyes began to flutter open. A small smile flashed across his flushed face. His smile disappeared when a sudden coughing fit struck him. His whole body racked as the coughing fit over took him. Eventually the coughing stopped. He sat up and pushed the covers off him. He wearily looked up at the older man.

"It's really warm in here." Link's small voice said.

"It doesn't help that your still dressed in layers." Linebeck quietly replied as he helped peel off the excess layers of clothing. "Better?"

Link nodded and scooted back down into the bed. He pulled up the covers and let out a shaky breath. Linebeck brushed the hair out of his son's eyes. He dipped the now warm cloth back into the icy water and placed it back onto the boy's burning forehead.

"Are you hungry at all?" Linebeck asked.

Link slowly shook his head. He looked down and let out a long and shaky breath, "Nuh-uh."

The captain stood up, "You probably should eat something. It will help. I'll be back in a couple of minutes."

The blond nodded and his eyes drooped shut. With that, the sailor made his way down into the kitchen. He rifled through the cupboards and found what he was looking for. Linebeck grabbed out the supplies he needed and went to work fixing a soup. After he set everything in the pot, he grabbed out some crackers, a tea bag, and honey as he waited for the soup to cook. He filled up a small kettle with water and waited for it to whistle. Then he poured the water over a teabag. After it had steeped he poured a nice glob of honey into the tea. It would help that cough Link had. His green eyes glanced over at the soup, which was now boiling. The older man poured a small amount of soup into a bowl, it was best not to make the boy eat too much right away. Linebeck set the bowl of soup, the crackers, and hot tea on a tray and headed back to his room.

The sound of Linebeck walking into the room pulled the boy out of his sleep. He slowly sat up and had another coughing fit. The sailor set the tray don and removed the cloth from Link's forehead. He offered Link the tea first, which the boy quickly gulped down. While his son started eating the crackers, he added another log onto the fire. The boy had just started working on his crackers when he suddenly stopped eating. His tiny arms wrapped around his stomach.

"My stomach hurts." He whimpered.

Linebeck had a feeling this would happen. He grabbed an empty bucket and handed to Link. No sooner after he was handed the bucket the poor kid lost the contents of his stomach. Linebeck rubbed the boy's back as he threw up. Tears ran down boys face as his whole body lurched. All the sailor could do for his son was wait it out with him. Once Link's stomach was satisfied, he pushed the bucket away and laid back down on the bed. His tired eyes drooped before he started to fall asleep.

"Link." Linebeck quietly said.

The boy opened his eyes wearily. His face was still flushed and the tears has only started to dry. He looked absolutely miserable, and Linebeck couldn't blame him for wanting to sleep it out.

"You need to eat something before you can go back to sleep." His voice was calm but also trying to his his worry.

Link's voice was so tiny, Linebeck barely heard it, "I'm not hungry."

"I know the last thing you want to is eat. But you need to get something in you." He comfortingly said.

Linebeck's worried look seemed to get through to Link. The boy lethargically sat up and reached for the bowl of soup. Sluggishly he took a few spoonfuls of soup before pushing it away. Link sat still for a minute. A wave of nausea rushed through him and he buried his face in his hands. He let out a small whimper. Linebeck sat beside his ill son and comfortingly rubbed his back. Link took in a few deep breaths, attempting to calm his raging stomach. Unfortunately, it didn't work. Seconds later he reached for the bucket and lost what little contents he had left in his stomach. The sailor continued to rub his son's back as he gave way to dry heaving. Linebeck let out a small sigh. It looks like this would be a reoccurring event in the meantime.

"Just try to get some sleep." Linebeck offered as he helped Link lay back down.

Linebeck placed a hand on Link's forehead. It was still extremely warm. In fact it felt even hotter than before. The older man let out a small anxious breath as Link drifted off to sleep again. The sailor shifted and laid down beside his sick son. Link scooted closer to his father in his sleep, as if subconsciously searching for warmth. It was going to be a long few days, Linebeck just knew it.


	25. Sick Day

**Thank you to** Link Fangirl01, Otaku Pickles, HyruleHearts1123, and Moonlight Raven Grave **for the reviews and to**  
savannahamminga **for favoriting. It really makes me happy that you guys love this story so much. I might do two squeal stories. One might be one-shot like stories where Linebeck, Link, and Tetra wake up on the boat at the end. The other would be Linebeck wakes up on his original ship and how him being in Link's life would effect Wind Waker. What do you guys think?  
**

He hadn't even been asleep for a half hour before he was jostled awake. Link suddenly lurched up and reached for the bucket. After a long series of dry heaving and loosing stomach acid, the boy pushed the bucket away. Exhausted with the sudden onslaught, the boy wearily laid back down on the bed. He pressed himself back up against his father and drifted off to sleep. Link would continue to wake up every five to twenty minutes, get sick, and go back to sleep. The cycle continued well into the night. After about six hours of this, it eventually worked up to about a quarter hour to an hour break in between Link jolting awake to get sick. Needless to say, it was a long night for the both of them.

Morning soon came and the morning light woke up the sick boy. Link sat up, not because he was going to get sick - for once. Linebeck was so in tune with Link sitting up and getting sick, that he also jolted awake at this action. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked at the child. Link just sat there, with no signs of nausea. The sailor sat up and placed a hand on his son's forehead. It was still really warm but it looked like he had powered through the worst of his fever during the night.

"How are you feeling?" Linebeck asked as he sat up.

Link rubbed at his eyes and quietly replied, "Okay, I guess. I'm kinda hungry though."

Linebeck stood up and messed with his son's hair before replying, "Alright. I'm going to get you something light. I'm not sure your still over your stomach bug yet."

The blond nodded and scooted back down into bed as the older man left the room. Chilly air kissed his cheeks as the captain went outside. He made his way downstairs and turned the stove back on to reheat the soup. As the soup started to warm up he grabbed out another set of crackers and a bit of bread. The older man's stomach grumbled. He was so busy taking care of Link that he hadn't eaten since before they visited the frozen island. He grabbed out a chunk of beef jerky and plopped a piece in his mouth. His attention was turned towards the soup, which had now began to boil. He snacked on another piece of jerky as he walked back over to the stove. Linebeck turned off the stove and poured a small bowl of soup for Link. He set everything on a tray and headed back up stairs.

Link eagerly downed his soup, but took enough time as not to upset his uneasy stomach. The boy nibbled on his bread as the sailor stoked the fire. The boy had fallen asleep by the time the fire was roaring. Exhaustion now began to weigh down on the older man as he felt the effects of a horrible night's sleep. He stood up and laid back down beside his sick child. His eyes fell shut once again as he let sleep take him. An hour had hardly passed before Link jolting up shook him awake. Linebeck inwardly sighed as he sat up. At least it the time between Link getting sick was getting longer. His hands comfortingly rubbed the ill child's back as he got sick. Link sighed and laid back down once he stopped getting sick.

"I'd rather have cucco pox again than this." Link mumbled miserably.

Linebeck chuckled and thought for a moment, "An oatmeal bath might help you feel better. Would you want one?"

Link nodded and reached for a glass of water. The boy took a sip as his father stood up. His brown eyes slipped shut at Linebeck left the room. He was woken up a little bit later by a gentle shake by his father.

"Bath's ready." Linebeck said warmly.

The boy rubbed his eyes and yawned as he sat up. The sailor wrapped his son up in a warm blanket and picked him up. He made his way as fast as possible to the bathroom to make sure Link stayed out of the cold as much as possible. After setting his son down by the bath he left to give him some privacy. Icy wind engulfed him as he walked back into his room. He grabbed the dishes that were beginning to collect in his room and made his way back into the kitchen. Might as well get the dishes done while he had the time. Just as he was finishing up drying the dishes, he heard his son walk in behind him.

"How was it?" Linebeck asked as he finished drying off the last of the dishes.

"It was good. Thanks." Link said as he yawned.

"No problem. Do you want anything to eat?" Linebeck asked as turned towards his son.

"Yeah." the blond nodded as he sat down at the kitchen table.

Linebeck went to work reheating the soup. He cut off a slice of bread and offered it to the sick boy. Link eagerly took and slowly munched on it as his soup warmed up. As the boy finished his soup, his brown eyes started to droop. Linebeck went into the other room and grabbed the blanket. He wrapped up the sleepy boy and carried him back up stairs. Link passed out the instant his head hit the pillow. Linebeck placed a hand on the blond's forehead. Thankfully, his fever was starting to go away, slowly, but surely. It wouldn't be too much longer before Link would be fighting monsters and saving the world.

* * *

About two hours had passed before Link woke up from his nap. He sat up and stretched his arms up to the ceiling. Link had enough of sleeping, he was bored and wanted to get up and do something. He was just about to get out of bed when he felt his father grab his arm lightly push him back into bed.

"Where do you think you're going?" Linebeck asked, as he looked up from a book.

"I'm bored." Link sighed as he crossed his arms in defeat, "I'm tired of just laying in bed and getting sick."

"Well," Linebeck said as he put his book down, "we can play a card game if you're up for it."

A smile flashed across the young hero's face, "You're gonna loose again."

Linebeck messed with Link's hair as he grabbed out the deck of cards, "I wouldn't be to sure about that. Besides, we're gonna play a new game."

Link's eyebrows raised, "Really? What game is that?"

Linebeck thought for a minute for replying, "It's called something not appropriate for a twelve year old to say, so we'll call it, 'I doubt it'."

"How does it work?" Link asked.

"Well, since there's only two players, we're changing it up a bit. Here pull out a few cards, but don't look." Linebeck instructed as he fanned out the deck of cards.

Link pulled out several cards and handed them to his father. Linebeck set the cards down on another table and reshuffled the deck.

"Alright, so the game goes like this: I deal out the cards between the two of us. The ultimate goal is to discard all of your cards. Now, how you do that is by us working our way up through the deck. You start with getting rid of your aces, then I get rid of twos, then you get rid of your threes. This continues until we are out of cards."

"That's it?" Link asked, sounding disappointed.

"Oh, not at all. You see, when you discard them you have to announce how many of that card you are putting down. Then you put the cards face down. Say it's my turn. I say 'I'm putting down four fours'. You look at your cards and see that you have a four. You can say 'I doubt it." I then have to flip my cards up to prove if I'm lying or not. If I lied, the entire stack of discarded cards goes to me. However, if you are wrong, the stack goes to you. Make sense?" Linebeck asked.

His son nodded as he divided up the remaining cards.

"I had you take out a few cards to make it easier to bluff. Normally you play with multiple people, but with two people, it's easy to call a bluff, since you have the rest of the cards in your hand." the sailor explained.

"Ready for me to beat you?" Link asked.

Linebeck playfully scoffed, "In your dreams kid. Now let's play. You go first."


	26. Isle of Ruins

**I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I had massive writer's block for this chapter. Thank you to Moonlight Raven grave for the story idea that helped the writer's block. Thank you so, so, so much to HyruleHearts1123, savannahamminga, Moonlight Raven Grave, Link Fangirl01, and ThePredicate for reviewing. It really does get me right in the feels seeing your reviews and how my story effects you on such an emotional level. Boy are you guys in for it with the Bellum fights. *Laughs evilly whilst rubbing hands together* It will send you on such an emotional roller coaster.**

 **Also, big change to the story, I was replaying Phantom Hourglass, and I re watched the end cut scene. It turns out Link has greenish eyes. So that's been changed. If you catch any brown eyes in earlier chapters, please tell me and I will fix that.**

 **Now that my massive writer's block is over, let's get on to the story.**

After a few more days of hanging out in bed playing card games, Link was finally gotten over the flu he had been fighting. His son was still sick and still had a slight fever, but they would be able to leave the island without problem. Once Linebeck was sure Link was well enough to be left on his own, he made his way back out into the cold. His fingers gripped at his coat, trying to hold in all its warmth. After a long trudge through the snowy wasteland, he found himself back at the ice temple. He grabbed Link's bag, jacket and overcoat that he threw off in an attempt to warm up his freezing child. They were frozen stiff at this point, but the sailor pried the icy bag open to make sure the metal was still in the bag. Fortunately, it was still in his bag and he trekked back through the tundra. A surge of warmth enveloped him as he entered his room.

Linebeck laid the frozen articles by the fireplace to warm up. He peeled his jacket off him and decided to warm up before they took off for the Isle of the Dead and Isle of Ruins. The names of the islands really didn't sit well with the captain, but they needed to go there. Linebeck glanced back to his sleeping child. Link rolled back over and muttered some nonsense in his sleep. The sailor shook his head. Link and his crazy dreams. At least he wasn't having nightmares.

The sailor threw his jacket back on and ventured back out into the cold. The rope had practically frozen to the post. With a lot effort and prying, he managed to break the rope free from the post. Linebeck fired up the engine, it gave a wine or protest, but after a bit of persuading, the engine purred to life. A few minutes later and they had left the ice covered port. With a few sweeps of chalk, a funnel of water surrounded the ship and left them near Mercay Island. After a week of staying in port with a sick child, they needed to restock supplies, besides the longer they put off the Isle of the Dead, the better in Linebeck's opinion.

* * *

The boat pulled up into the docks of Mercay Island. The sailor tied the boat off and instructed the fairies to keep an eye on Link while he was gone. He ducked below deck to check on supplies. They were really low on most of their food supplies, but it was nothing a quick trip to the market couldn't fix. Once the shopping list was finished the captain made his way back to the deck. He nodded at Greg, the harbor store owner as he past the building and made his way to the market. After buying up what he needed, Linebeck walked back through the city to his ship.

Carefully, he put the supplies away and made his way back up to the steering wheel. He grabbed out the sea charts and slate on his way. Linebeck studied the sea chart and drew a weird combination of a Z and a triangle. His brow furrowed as he examined the map. Which one had the metal? The sailor pulled out his telescope and examined both the islands in the distance. The Isle of the Dead seemed to have a massive storm emanating from it. With Link still feeling under the weather, it was a bad idea to head to an island with bad weather. Isle of Ruins it is then. It took most of the day, but the boat slowly pulled into port. Linebeck tied the boat off and went to sleep.

Morning crept up on the father and son. Link rubbed his eyes and looked out the window.

"Which island are we at?" The boy asked as he yawned.

"Isle of Ruins." Linebeck groggily replied as he rubbed his eyes.

The captain reached out for the energetic kid as Link hopped out of bed. The young hero was quickly looking through his thawed bag to take inventory on his supplies.

"Hold on." the sailor said, capturing his son's attention, and placed a hand on his forehead, "You're still sick. You're staying in bed. I'll go look for the metal today. You just get some rest. I'll be back before sundown."

Link crossed his arms in protest as his green eyes glowered up at his father, "But I feel fine. Besides at least wait until I feel good enough to go with you. What if you encounter a boss monster?"

Linebeck rubbed his son's head before packing a bag full of supplies, "Don't worry. I'll be fine. I've done my fair share of fighting."

"But fighting people and fighting monsters are two different things." the blond protested.

"I'll go with Linebeck if that will make you feel better." Chimed Ciela as she floated between the two males.

The captain raised an eyebrow, "Really Sparkles? Didn't know that you cared? Glad to know that I've become such an inspiring Captain."

"Oh shush. I'm doing this for Link's well being, not for yours." retorted the fairy who was trying to hide a playful tone.

"Whatever you say Sparkles. Just keep telling yourself that you don't care, but we both know you do." Linebeck repeated with a smirk and smiled wider when he heard the fairy make a faux scoff.

Linebeck then turned towards the other two fairies, "You too keep an eye on Link. Make sure he stays in bed and doesn't leave the ship."

"Will do." Replied Leaf.

Neri added, "Don't worry, we'll keep an eye on Link."

Reluctantly, Link climbed back into bed. Once Linebeck was sure he had everything packed he rustled his son's hair before following the fairy out the door. They stepped off into the partially flooded island to begin their search.

Sure the sailor and fairy sometimes got on each other's nerves, that much was true. Linebeck hoped that they weren't going to be at each other's throats the whole time. Regardless of what was going to happen, things were certainly going to be interesting to say the least.


	27. Linebeck and Ciela

**Thank you to** **Moonlight Raven Grave, HyruleHearts1123, savannahamminga, Otaku Pickles, and Belladonna209 for reviewing. I decided to make this a Linebeck and Ciela adventure because this island would have been very glossed over and there hasn't been a lot of the duo's interacting in their special way.  
**

The duo made their way in silence up towards a small cavern. Linebeck gripped the handle of his sword as they approached the doorway. As soon as they entered into the cavern a door slammed shut behind them. With quick reflexes, the sailor pulled his sword out of its sheath.

The water in front of them bubbled and an angry Zora emerged. Water cascaded down the warrior as he lunged for the fairy and captain. Linebeck quickly slashed his sword into the menacing beast. With a faint cry, it crumpled to the ground. The instant the Zora hit the floor, the door opened back up and a bridge magically formed across the water. Hesitantly Linebeck made his way across the bridge, unsure at what lurked in the waters below.

"I vaguely remember this place." Ciela murmured as she flew over the bridge, "If my memory serves me right, there should be four temples with four spirits of knights in them."

"Are they friendly knights or ones that are going to give us trouble?" Linebeck asked as they entered the light of day again.

"They were exceptionally loyal to the Ocean King during their lifetimes. But with all the monsters appearing, we might have to fight at least one before talking to each of the knights." the fairy replied.

Linebeck leaped across a small stream of water and continued after the fairy. They were starting to make their way to the northwest corner of the island. Not too far away, they could make out the second largest temple.

"Great. Monsters, always a joy to fight." the sailor muttered under his breath as he jumped from platform to platform.

Ciela looked over at her male companion, "Oh, have a lot of experience fighting monsters do you? You know Zoras don't really count as monsters, right?"

The captain playfully scoffed as he walked across another bridge, "Oh I know Zora's aren't much in terms of monsters. I've fought quite a few real monsters in my lifetime. Besides I helped fight that giant squid and whale thing."

"Oh, sorry. I didn't know steering the ship while your son did most of the cannon work counted as fighting monsters." the fairy teased.

"Please. I've done more than just fight those two monsters." the man retorted as he hiked up the hillside.

"Oh yeah, tell me." Ciela said sarcastically.

As if on cue, a pair of stalfos jumped out of the trees. With a few quick slashes from Linebeck's sword, they crumpled to the ground. A smile flashed across the sailor's face as he looked up at the fairy.

"They don't count either." Ciela replied as she lead the way towards the entrance to the temple.

"I know that Sparkles. Like I said, I have fought real monsters. When I was in the world where I came from we would have to defend the ship from giant sea monsters every other supply run we made. And those things didn't go down with much of a fight. Oh, I had to fight a lot of ReDeads." The sailor shuddered at the memory, "Now those are some pretty scary monsters. Their screams can literally paralyze a man. And not only can they attack you, but they can also raise their dead. Sure they aren't epic boss monsters, but still..."

"Link told me about those horrid things. I've never heard of such things until he told me about them." Celia replied.

The duo entered the temple. It was peacefully quite, unlike the eerily quite of most temples. Torchlight flickered as they made their way to the tomb of the knight who inhabited it. Celia floated above the tomb and began to glow brighter. Seconds later a spirit emerged from the sarcophagus. The spirit blinked its dead eyes and gazed over at the fairy.

"Ah, Ciela. What brings me the pleasure of seeing you again." The spirit of the knight said warmly.

"I'm afraid that terrible times have brought me back here Sir Bremeur. Bellum is returning with great power. We must reforge the Phantom Blade and need some of the last sacred metal." the fairy replied solemnly.

Sir Bremeur looked down with a defeated expression, "King Mutoh did posses the metal you seek. But it was stolen, and now my king is greatly distressed. But I can assist you in your quest to find the metal by giving you a pathway to Sir Doylan's temple. Sir Doylan may know more information to aid you in your quest."

The spirit raised his hands up into the air and disappeared back into his sarcophagus. With that the two ventured back out into the sunlight. When they left the building they noticed a bridge had appeared not too far away from them. Linebeck once again looked at the waters by the bridge uneasily as he crossed it.

"You know I'm really surprised that you're doing this." Ciela stated bluntly.

"What crossing a bridge? I can't fly like you Sparkles." replied Linebeck.

The fairy shook her head, "No. I meant you going out and exploring on your own. You wouldn't set foot near a temple before. Why choose now. You always seemed so fearful of exploring the unknown, especially by yourself."

Linebeck answered as they continued onto the next temple, "Well I didn't originally want to explore out of cowardliness. Sure it was because I was scared, but not for just my own life. It was more of me thinking of my kid's well being. I mean I didn't know Link was my Link until after I saved him from drowning."

The sailor leaped across another canyon as he regathered his thoughts.

"I didn't want to put my life on the line for some random kid and his quest when I had two kids back at home who needed me. How could I just orphan them like that, for what, a complete stranger? But that changed when I realized that Link was my son. Now it's hard for me to let Link go into a temple by himself. Sure he's got you, Leaf, and Neri, but each time he goes up against something alone..." Linebeck sighed, "I know he's a strong kid who fought the literal incarnation of evil once before, but... I'm still his father, but I have no idea how to handle this all. Ashli would have known what to do. She always knew what to do."

The duo looked up at the entrance to the second pyramid. It was one of the larger temples on the island and towered above them. Celia was barely leading now, her faint glowing illuminated the entrance.

"It must be tough." Ciela said quietly.

Linebeck looked at the fairy with a faint quizzical look.

"Being a parent I mean." The fairy quickly replied, "Especially since Link's been through so much."

"And it doesn't help that Link's at that age where he's starting to be independent. Goddesses, he'll be a teenager in another month." Linebeck said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I am so not ready for that."

As the sailor talked they approached a second sarcophagus. Once again the fairy approached the tomb and began to glow. Out of the casket arose another spirit.

"Hello Ciela. I know about your quest. Unfortunately, I am not your last stop, but just another on a long line of stops. Behind me, there lies a key. Use it in Sir Bremeur's temple. It will lower the water level on the island and will help you get one step closer to the metal that you need to defeat Bellum." Doylan said before returning to mist.

* * *

Linebeck leaned up against the wall as he caught his breath. He slid down the wall and sat down as he examined his map of the last temple. The sailor and the fairy had trekked all over the island for a good part of the day and finally made it about halfway through the last pyramid.

"At least we are making good time Sparkles." Linebeck said as he grabbed out an apple.

"Yeah, we are. But we need to hurry up if you're gonna make it back by dark." Ciela replied.

Linebeck nodded as he took the last bite of his apple. The sailor got back up to his feet and put his supplies away. They continued along the hallway. Up ahead they noticed a large chest in the middle of the room. Cautiously, they approached the chest. Inside they found a large hammer.

Linebeck reached in and picked up the hammer. While the hammer was quite large, it was strangely very light, but also very heavy. There was no doubt that this was a magical hammer.

"I remember this thing. Don't let its weight fool you, it's very powerful." Ciela mentioned as she flew up to the hammer.

The fairy reached for the hammer. In that instant, something strange happened. It was like they see into eachother's thoughts. Linebeck stepped back in surprise.

"Woah! What was up with that Sparkles?" the sailor asked, sounding a bit freaked out.

The fairy thought for a minute, "Oh yeah. I remember what made this hammer special."

"So the fact that it has a changing weight doesn't make it magical enough, it needs to mess with our heads?" Linebeck sarcastically interrupted.

"Would you let me finish?" Ciela asked with a huff before she continued, "It can't be wielded by a single fairy, or a single person. It needs two wielders."

"Of course, I should have known. It was so obvious, why didn't I think of that?" sarcasm dripped from the captain's mouth.

The fairy glared at the older man, "It has the potential for great power, but one person can't do it alone. Only a fairy can bring out the mighty potential using their magic. But it takes a lot of focus to do so. The fairy essentially becomes a weapon. And a weapon needs a meister to wield it. That's why a psychic connection occurs."

Linebeck was quite for a moment, "That seems like a lot of work for a hammer. But whatever Sparkles. We need to get going if we're going to be back by dark."

* * *

After getting lost for the umpteenth time in the pyramid, they finally made it to the boss door. Linebeck placed the giant boss key into the keyhole and turned it. With a loud groan the doors opened. Cautiously, the duo entered the chamber. Ciela's tiny body lit the way as they entered a gigantic chamber. A giant stone statue sat in the middle of the room.

The sailor inwardly groaned as he realized that this was the monster they were going to be fighting. His emerald eyes flicked across the room and over the giant looking for ways to destroy it. His eyes found four catapults in each of the cardinal directions. Slowly, the giant creature rose to its feet. As it stood it raised up a giant hand. Linebeck and Ciela barely jumped out of the way before it brought a heavy hand down onto the floor. Arrows flew out of the monster as they ran for the catapult. Unfortunately, there wasn't anything to use to fire at the monster. Linebeck got an idea - a terrible one, but it was something. Ciela and Linebeck connected telepathically. The sailor raised his arms up and threw them down like he was welding the hammer.

Seconds later Linebeck was flung into the air. Working together, the captain swung his arm at a red bolt on the side of the monster. With a single hit a piece of the armor collided with the ground. Linebeck smirked when he saw that his plan had worked. He jumped out of the way of another fist and darted towards anther catapult. Again, the sailor repeated the downward swinging motion. This time they went for a chest bolt. Slowly but surely, they took out the bolts holding the armor to the giant monster.

When the last piece of armor fell off the monster let out a deafening cry. Arrows shot out from all directions. Linebeck hissed in pain as an arrow lodged itself into his left side. Ciela cried out for him, but the captain broke off most of the arrow and continued towards the next catapult. The older man flew into the air and rapidly swung at the remaining four bolts. The monster let out another cry as another barrage of arrows flew. This time Linebeck was hit with two arrows: one in his right outer thigh, the other in his left shoulder. Without hesitation, he rushed towards the catapult. He soared into the air. With one quick motion, he had Ciela bring down the hammer, shattering the crystal. The monster collapsed into a pile of rubble, leaving the fairy an injured man in a growing puddle of blood. Sand erupted from the monster and flew into the Phantom Hourglass.

"Linebeck!" Ciela cried as she flew over the captain, "We need to get those arrows out now!"

Linebeck shook a weary head, his words sounded like they took great effort to say, "No Sparkles. That's the last thing I want to do. I'll bleed out if I take them out right now. Let's just get back to the ship."

With that Linebeck passed out in the pool of his own blood.


	28. Antitoxin

**Thank you to Moonlight Raven Grave, and Guest for reviewing and thank you to** **TheNerdyPixel for fallowing. If I missed anyone, tell me. My notifications are still wonky.  
**

Linebeck's head was throbbing as his emerald eyes slowly opened. He half expected to be in his room or still in the pyramid. The sailor was in a room he recognized, but it was the last place he expected he would come to in. Slowly, he tried to sit up. Throngs of pain rushed through him at different intervals and in three distinct spots. A hand pushed his shirtless chest down.

"Lay back down. You're going to tear your stitches, and I worked too hard on them for you to ruin them because you wanted to sit up all willy nilly." Joline said as she began mixing a strange concoction together.

"What happened, exactly?" The sailor asked as he pinched the bridge or his nose, "And where's Link?"

"Drink this first." The pirate instructed as she handed the injured man the strange liquid.

"Bottoms up." He muttered before downing the drink in one gulp.

His green eyes widened as he almost spit out the drink. He coughed as the disgusting liquid coated the back of his throat.

"Goddesses Jolene? What was in that? It tasted like green chuchu guts." Linebeck said trying not to gag.

"Close. Blue chuchu guts." Jolene corrected. "Here. Take some rum to wash it down."

Linebeck eagerly took it and downed it with a swift motion.

"Thanks." Muttered the sailor.

"No problem." the pirate replied, "My crew and I were sailing by the Isle of Ruins when we spotted your ship. I figured it was about time that we met again under better circumstances. But we only found Link and the two fairies. He told us you and the other fairy went off exploring the island and you should have been back about a half hour ago. So some of my crew stayed back and watched the kid while we found your butt. We found you right after you passed out in a pool of your own blood. After dragging your butt back to the ship, I discovered that the arrows were laced with a toxin. It causes the victim to slip into a comatose state, making it hard to them to get aid. You're lucky I knew the antitoxin, or you'd sill be out cold for another week. Blue chuchu guts, an amazing and versatile substance. Anyways, I removed the arrows, mixed up the antitoxin and rubbed it into the wounds to help wake you up, stitched you up, and gave your passed out butt antitoxin for a week. Link's fine by the way. After we fixed you up he and the fairy told us about the metal and we grabbed some for ya. I also made Link a concoction that took his fever away in less than an hour. Then we hooked up your ship and charted a course Bannan Island."

"Wow, I've been out for a week?" Linebeck asked as he rubbed his head.

"Oh yeah, you talk in your sleep." Jolene playfully said as she gathered up some medical supplies.

The captain chuckled, "So that's where he gets it from."

"Who, Link?" Jolene asked as she opened a jar of salve.

"Yeah." Linebeck nodded.

Jolene was rubbing slave over the stitches on his arm and side as she spoke, "He's a good kid - Link is. He's been hanging out with my crew for the past week. Link's a lot like you, you know. He's got your eyes - defiantly got that smile of yours."

Linebeck's face turned scarlet when he realized he was only wearing boxers as Jolene pushed back the covers to get to the wound on his thigh. Awkward tension - that was the best way for Linebeck to describe it - hung in the air ash she had to push up part of his boxers to get to his injury. It had been eight and a half years since a woman had, uh, gotten this, er, close to the captain. He certainly wasn't used to that.

"Oh stop that." Jolene said as she rolled her chocolate brown eyes, "Wearing a lot of clothing would irritate the stitches. Besides who do you think got you out of your bloody clothes?"

The sailor blushed even deeper, "I told you to stop that. I wasn't really paying attention to- eh-hem - I just didn't want your bloody clothes getting all over everything. Besides you were married once. Does something like this really bother you that much? It's a wonder you had two kids."

"No, it's just... never mind..." Linebeck hastily started.

"You were never able to move on after Ashli died." Jolene quietly finished. The sailor gave her a confused look, "You talk in your sleep, remember?"

"Right. Right." the sailor quietly said more to himself than to the pirate.

"Good news. It looks like your stitches can be removed tomorrow." Jolene said as she tried to change the subject.

"Mmh." Linebeck mumbled.

His head was growing heavy. He had slept for a whole week, but still his body craved more sleep. The pirate noticed the sailor's drooping eyes.

"You're body is still fighting off the toxin. The antitoxin just makes you wake up a lot faster, you're still going to be really groggy for the next few days. But by the time we get to land, you'll be back to normal and out of my life again." Jolene muttered.

Linebeck rolled his eyes, "Don't be like that Jolene."

"Well why not? It's what happens." Jolene's voice was a mixture of emotion, "You and me, running round and around, never catching each other, never meant to catch each other. That's how it is between us Linebeck. We were never meant-"

Jolene was silenced by a sudden kiss on the lips. It was sudden and unexpected. Everything in that moment seemed to stop. The two stared at each other for a moment after the kiss. Their faces grew into a deep shade of red when what had happened sunk in.

"That...uh... I...uh... should we pretend that never happened or... I don't know..." Linebeck stuttered as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

"I'm not sure." the flustered woman replied.

Fortunately, a knock on the door interrupted the awkward moment. Jolene tossed him a button up shirt, which Linebeck quickly put on and buttoned up. Once he was covered up, Jolene answered the door.


	29. I Doubt It

**Thank you to Guest, Moonlight Raven Grave, and** **savannahamminga for reviewing. It makes me smile a lot when I hear that people are binge reading this in one sitting. And this is a lengthy story, at least compared to my other stories (please don't look at them, I really need to update stuff I wrote back when I was in middle school). And this story has way surpassed 2,000 views, especially since the traffic status went down a week, we might actually be near 3,000 views. But alas, we are approaching the end to the story.**

 **I do apologize that this has kinda waded into the LinebeckxJolene category, but meh, what are you gonna do.**

Jolene opened the door to reveal Link waiting at the door. He looked up at the pirate with big emerald eyes.

"Is my dad awake?" He asked.

The pirate nodded and let the kid into her room. He quickly rushed up beside his dad. The young hero sat in the chair beside Jolene's bed.

"You're finally awake." Link said smiling.

"Yeah. I am. But I'm still really tired, so forgive me if I fall asleep on you." His father playfully replied as he stiffed a yawn.

The blond smiled, "Ciela told me that you were pretty awesome back in the temple."

Linebeck raised an eyebrow, "Oh yeah. It must be because I'm such an inspiring captain."

"She also said that you would say that and to tell you 'Not to let it go to your head or it will get even bigger' when you say that." Link said behind a smirk he was trying to hide.

The sailor chuckled to himself, "Gotta love Sparkles. So, did you do anything interesting while I was conked out?"

"I learned another card came." Link informed with a mall half shrug.

"Oh yeah? What is it?" he asked his son.

"Gerudo Ratscrew. It's a lot of fun. It kinda hurts your hand if you go for a lot of the slaps. We tried to get Jolene to play but she was too busy." Link informed.

"I was busy giving your father antitoxin so his lazy butt would wake up faster." Jolene retorted with a slightly playful tone, "Speaking of which, he should probably get some rest. He's still got some of the toxin in his system."

Link looked a little defeated, but held his resolve, "Okay. But next time you get up we're playing cards."

"And I will beat you at whatever game you choose." the sailor teased.

"In your dreams Dad." his son said as he left the room.

The only thing left was awkward silence between the two of them. It was so thick in the air, you could cut it with a knife. They looked at each other but the second they made eye contact, they both shifted their eyes.

"I'm going to go check on my crew - make sure they haven't done anything stupid while I was away." Jolene's words were awkward and tripped over each other.

"Yeah, especially if Johnathan and Bremer are together." Linebeck agreed as he shut his green eyes.

Jolene let out a huff, "Oh, don't get me started on what those two did after you took off."

"Then I won't. Go check on your crew. I'll be fine here." the sailor said, his eyes still shut tight.

Jolene let a small smile slip across her face as she went to inspect her ship.

* * *

The sailor had spent a better part of the day looking out at the sea with his son. It wasn't too often that they had time to look out at the sea together. Normally they had to keep an eye out for the random sea monster or obstacle. But with others steering the ship, Link and Linebeck had much to the day to themselves, as long as they stayed out of the way. It was a nice and relaxing day- and those seemed far and few between anymore. For the most part, Linebeck was still kinda out of it, but he was there enough, and that's what mattered. And after a long drowsy day, Linebeck was ready to get these itchy stitches out.

The pirate leader signaled the sailor to head into her cabin. Linebeck followed and shut the door behind him. He began unbuttoning his shirt so that Jolene could get a look at his injuries.

"Alright, it looks like we can finally remove those stitches of yours." Jolene said as she examined the wounds.

The pirate walked over to her medical cabinet and grabbed the tools to remove the stitches. Linebeck removed his shirt and pants as Jolene picked up the medical scissors. She went to work cutting the stitches. Once all the stitches were removed, Jolene picked up tweezers and went to work taking out the stitches. Linebeck and Jolene went to work rubbing salve on the wounds.

"Thanks." Linebeck said quietly as he began pulling his pants back up.

"No problem." Jolene was smiling as she began cleaning up.

* * *

Linebeck was beginning to feel back to his normal self now that the toxin had finally left his system. The island home to the sword maker was about another day's worth of sailing. The setting sun didn't give much of the crew to do besides play cards. So there they were, Jolene, Linebeck, Link, Markus, and Bremer sitting at a large table together.

"Three fives." Link said as he tried to keep a straight face.

It took a lot of willpower for Linebeck not to smirk. His cards clearly showed that Link was lying. Linebeck loved his son, but he was not about to let him win.

"I doubt it." the sailor said.

Link flipped the cards over to reveal two fives, and an ace. He shrugged and scooped up a decent pile of cards.

"Two sixes." Jolene curtly said as she laid down a pair of cards.

Bremer shook his blond head, "Two lairs in a row? Shameful. I call bullshiiii-I doubt it."

"Nice save." Markus replied sarcastically as Jolene grabbed her two sevens.

"Please, it's not like the kid's never going to hear foul language. He sails on a pirate ship for crying out loud." defended Bremer.

"One seven." Linebeck hastily said as he threw a card down, in an attempt to end the conversation.

"Nice save." Jolene whispered to Linebeck, "Also... bullshit."

With a small scowl, Linebeck put his queen back in his hand. The game continued on into the night. Time slipped away and Linebeck began to noticed his son grow weary. By then most of the crew was also feeling sluggish. They quickly finished the game with the victor being Bremer. The sailor made sure Link got to bed without trouble before being called upon by the pirate leader.

"I want to make sure you're doing fine without stitches." Jolene said quietly.

Together they made their way to her room. She shut the door behind them and turned the lock. Butterflies were dancing in the sailor's stomach. This might be his chance to make up for that awkward kiss from earlier. Linebeck leaned in towards Jolene. Their lips were inches apart. Time felt like it slowed down as they looked at each other. An instant later their faces smashed into each other as they both leaned in to finish the kiss. They both grabbed at their noses. A mixture of painful groans and laughter overcame the silence that had lingered in the room. Unfortunately for the sailor, he could feel blood welling up at the back of his nose. He leaned back his head and pinched his nose in an attempt to prevent it from bleeding. No such luck. Quickly Jolene reached for an old rag.

"Well that didn't go as planned." Linebeck muttered as he put the cloth up to his nose, his voice sounded off since he was pinching his nose.

"That kinda killed the moment." agreed Jolene as she rubbed her nose.

Linebeck threw himself onto the bed, in hopes that laying down would help stop the bleeding.

"You better not get any blood on my bed." teased the pirate as she plopped down beside him.

Linebeck dryly responded, "I'll do my best to keep the blood in my nose. Goddesses, I hate nosebleeds. They always to _forever_ to stop."

"How long do they take to stop?" she asked as she propped herself up on her elbows.

"The last one took about three minutes, but I got a nasty punch that broke my nose." he answered and looked towards the pirate.

"Maybe this one won't last that long." Jolene replied hopefully.

"Maybe." Linebeck repeated, still pinching his nose.

Jolene got off the bed and dampened a rag. She offered it to the sailor as he sat up. It seemed like the bleeding had stopped. He set the soiled rag down and began wiping his face.

"You missed a spot." he heard the pirate say.

"Oh yeah?" the sailor joked as he narrowed his eyes.

"Yeah." Jolene said as she grabbed the rag from Linebeck.


	30. Zuaz's Island

**Thank you guys so much for everything. You really make my day when I see you reviewing, following, and favoriting. Guest, Moonlight Raven Grave,**  
 **savannahamminga, It'sJustAKindOfMagic, kitsunefireball, thank you for your awesome reviews. kitsunefireball, thank you for favoriting and following.**

 **The direct timeline sequel will be the first to get started and up and going because I have yet to beat Wind Waker, and I want to see how I can have Linebeck affect the story before I go writing it.**

Linebeck sat down in the galley enjoying his cup of coffee. After constantly being drowsy and not having any coffee to get him through the day, this glass made him really happy. Jolene sat beside him enjoying her own cup of coffee while Link sat across from him, chatting off Bremer's ears.

"So I don't think I have ever had as much fun as I had last night." Jolene quietly and took a sip of coffee.

Linebeck's face grew a little hot as he remembered last night. A small smile worked its way onto Jolene's lips when she noticed the sailor's face turn a shade of red.

"Yeah. I still can't believe Bremer beat everyone last night. He had to be cheating somehow." the sailor said, trying to change the subject before taking a long sip of coffee.

"I don't cheat. I just have better poker faces than you guys. You're just jealous." the pirate joked as he crossed his arms.

"Don't let your head get any bigger, you can barely walk through the doorway." Jolene said offhandedly.

Linebeck laughed and Bremer gave his captain a fake glare. A second later Markus came downstairs.

He leaned his head in the doorway, "Captain." Jolene looked up and the pirate continued, "Zuaz's Island is in sights.

* * *

They docked both the ships in the small port. Link jumped and scrambled around grabbing up the chunks of the different metal as Linebeck and Jolene walked out onto the pier to say their goodbyes.

"So it looks like this is the end of the line, eh." her brown eyes looked at the ocean as she spoke.

Linebeck stuck his hands in his waist coat pockets, "Not necessarily. It's going to take a while for the sword to be forged. And then after that we need to meet up with Oshus before taking out Bellum. In that time you could probably sail to Mercay Island and meet us there."

"But you are going back to your world after Bellum is defeated." Jolene pointed out.

"You could come with us- well I'm not sure the extent of Oshus' powers, but theoretically, you could come if you wanted to." the sailor said.

Jolene was quiet for a few minutes as she mulled things over, "Maybe. I'd leave behind a bit. I would miss my sister. Goddesses knows what would become of my ship. I'm not even sure how much room is on that girl's ship, or if she'd even want me on her ship."

"There is a lot to think about. But we have time. It's not like we have to go back home the minute Bellum is dead. We can talk things over before we leave." Linebeck offered.

They heard Link running from Zuaz's hut. The boy was out of breath from the small trek and Ciela sat on his shoulder.

"Well it looks like we've got a long time to wait." Link informed as he caught his breath, "It's going to take a couple of days at his fastest. But seeing how it's an important blade, and the only one in existence that can destroy Bellum, he's going to take his time on it."

Linebeck gave Jolene an 'eh, what did I tell ya' look. She smiled at him before rolling her eyes and heading back to check on her own ship. The sailor and the boy walked back towards their ship. There had to be a way for them to kill time on this island. A thought popped into his head. If it killed time earlier, it would kill time now.

"Hey Link," the father said, grabbing his son's attention, "Let's go grab some rocks."

A smile quickly found its way on his son's face as the boy took off for the beach. They spent a good part of the day skipping stones into the ocean. Link and Linebeck competed to see who could get the most skips from a single rock. Link wound up winning with seven skips which beat Linebeck's five. But as the sun set on the beach, they sprawled out on the sand and looked at the sunset. It's warm hues contrasted against the cooling air. Sure things got crazy, but a sunset was a nice reminder that life could be simple, and full of beauty.

* * *

Linebeck hadn't seen much Link since they had left Zuaz's Island. His fatherly senses kept nagging at him, telling him something was wrong, or at least not perfectly fine. He decided to look what Link was up to and head down to the cargo hold. Link was sitting on a crate, slightly turned away from him. The finished Phantom blade rested in his lap, it's newly formed shaped glinted in the low light. The boy's shoulders were slumped as his green eyes slowly went back and forth between Tetra in the blade. Tiny fingers ran along the intricate designs on the blade as he let out a long and shaky breath. Link's blond head fell even lower as a look of misery and anguish flashed across his young face. The sailor had never seen such a look from his son. It felt like him to see what normally was such a happy kid, be in a state of despair. What kind of world did they live in where a child have to live like that? Linebeck felt like he was intruding on a private moment and was unsure whether to make his presence known, or turn back the way he came.

"I know you're there." His voice was quiet, and eyes still cast downwards.

Linebeck slowly walked over to his son and sat down beside him. He placed a comforting hand on the slumped shoulder. Link's green eyes flicked up towards him for a brief second before falling downwards.

"I've never seen you like this before. What's wrong?" Linebeck quietly asked.

Link's lips were trying not to quiver, and tears were starting to well up in his eyes. He turned himself away from his father, trying to hide the tears that he was desperately trying to fight back.

His voice was shaky, "Fighting Gannon was one of the most terrifying experiences I had to go through. And now I'm going to have to go through it all over again with Bellum." tears began to well up even more, "I'm supposed to be the embodiment on courage, the Goddess' chosen hero. But the thought of having to go through it all over again just terrifies me." the tears began to run down his young face, "I don't want to do it. I never wanted to do it. But I have to. Even though I'm scared out of my mind. And I shouldn't be. I'm supposed to be the hero that saves the day and goes on with his life. But I'm so scared. I'm always so scared."

Linebeck pulled his son into a hung and held onto him. Link's fingers dug into him as he held onto his father and sobbed. What a horrible world they lived in that made someone so young go through so much. He could still hear his son's sobs as they wracked his body.

"It's okay to be scared." Linebeck's words were quite, but also comforting, "Everyone gets scared. You've gone through more in the past year than what most people go through their entire lives. You've fought terrible and terrifying things that lesser men would run away from. It's easy to run away, but it takes great courage to face your fears." He squeezed his son even tighter, "I'm proud of all the things you've done. Not a day goes by that I'm not proud of you. Goddesses, I love you so much, it hurts to see you like this. But you're not going up against Bellum alone. I'm going in there with you, and be with you every step of the way."

Link looked up, his tears had stopped a while ago, "You don't have to. It's my responsibility."

"I'm doing this because it's my responsibility as a father who loves his son." Linebeck said as he hugged his son.


	31. Bellum

**Thank you to savannahamminga, Guest, HyruleHearts1123, and Guest for reviewing. I'm sorry I took so long with this chapter, it was hard to write this fight, but its finally done. So I'm not sure if I should continue the story and do wind waker separately or stop at the end of phantom hourglass and do both sequels. What do you guys want?  
**

The boat pulled up into port beside Jolene's ship long after the sun had gone down. Link had gone to sleep ages ago so he would be well rested for the big battle tomorrow. The uneasy feeling in his stomach kept Linebeck up and heading towards Mercay Island. The churning only got worse the closer to the island they got, and he could only imagine if Link was feeling the same way. But after many trips to the island, Linebeck pulled his ship up to his usual spot. A smile worked its way across his face when he saw a familiar ship across the dock from his. Butterflies made his stomach even more crazier when he saw the pirate captain waiting on the docks. A smile was stretched across her face.

"I thought you would never show up." Jolene said quietly as she walked towards Linebeck.

Linebeck began tying off the ship, "Well you know how it goes. It takes a while for swords to be forged. You can't rush the only weapon that can destroy the current incarnation of evil." His cocky smile was faltering as anxiety began rushing through him again.

Jolene's head cocked to the side and her eyebrows furrowed. She could tell something was up.

"What's wrong?" Jolene asked as her hand found the sailor's.

The captain let out a small breath of air, "Tomorrow's a big day. Part of me wants to get it over with, and another part of me wishes that it didn't have to happen."

Jolene squeezed his hand comfortingly and gave him a small smile, "It'll be okay. Link's a strong kid, he had to get it from somewhere."

Linebeck smiled back. The sound of waves riding up against the docks and ships keeping them company.

The pirate tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and broke the silence, "So I thought about what you said the other day. I thought about what I would have to give up by leaving, and thought about what I could gain by leaving."

"Have you made up your mind?" Linebeck asked.

Jolene nodded, "I've had my fun here. Bremer would make a good replacement if he vowed not to destroy my ship with Markus. If he destroys my ship, I'm coming back one way or another. I went to see other worlds, be a part of something bigger, be with you."

Jolene leaned in towards Linebeck. Their lips had barely touched for a moment when Ciela came up from below the deck.

"Sorry to interrupt your guy's moment, but I need to steal the captain for a few minutes." Cirla said as she rolled her eyes at the two lovebirds.

"Link?" Linebeck asked, figuring it was another nightmare.

"Link." Ciela repeated as she flew back downstairs.

"I'll see you tomorrow." The sailor said before giving the pirate one last kiss.

Jolene's cheeks turned red, "You better make it out of there safely tomorrow. I don't want to have to drag your butt out of another temple.*

"It was a pyramid, thank you very much." Linebeck replied snidely, a grin flashed across his face.

"Whatever," she playfully pushed the sailor, "Get going. I will see you later."

They both went their separate ways, Linebeck downstairs, and Jolene towards her ship. Linebeck had never head Link scream so loudly. He dashed down the stairs taking them two at a time, and threw open the door to his son's room. Link was wildly thrashing around. The boy's breaths were panicked as tears streams down his face. He looked like he was struggling against an unrelenting force. This was the absolute worst he had ever seen Link during a night terror.

"No! It's not real! It's not real! It's not! It's not!" Link screamed out, straining his voice.

Linebeck shook Link awake. His eyes snapped open and the child let out a scream that turned into sobs. He latched onto his father and kept sobbing.

"Hey. I'm here. It's okay," Linebeck spoke quietly as he held onto his son.

Link continued to sob, his whole body wracked. His hands that grasped a hold of him, but his hands were shaking uncontrollably.

"It's not. It's not okay." Link's voices quivered with absolute fear coating his words.

This was the first time Link had _ever_ replied to him after a nightmare. He looked down at his terrified son with utter confusion.

"It's just a dream Link. You're safe from whatever was in your dream." he said as tried to comfort and calm down his son.

* * *

The morning had been quiet as they gathered up what they needed to take on the final temple. Once they were certain they had all their supplies, they set out to Oshus' house to complete the Phantom Blade. It was quiet as they walked. Both males felt uneasy about the task that loomed ahead, but eventually the hut came into sight.

Oshus invited them in. They said hello and present the blade and Phantom Hourglass. The old man raised his staff into the air. The blade and Phantom Hourglass were lifted up into the air. A bright and warm yellow glow immersed the two objects. The glowing became almost blinding. Seconds later it faded to reveal a singular sword with a yellow hourglass embedded into the handle. Oshus commanded the sword to fly into Link's hand. Linebeck could feel the great power it released just by standing near it.

"The Phantom Hourglass and Phantom Blade are now one. Together they hold the power to destroy Bellum. Now that they are together, the sword will protect the two of you from the curse that has taken over much of the temple. I wish you luck, and hope to see you soon."

* * *

Linebeck and Link both stared up at the ancient temple. The sailor's stomach churned at the memories of the last time he entered. He looked over at his son. Link was doing his best to hide his fear, but he could see it. He placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him an encouraging smile.

"You got me with you this time." Linebeck said to his son.

"And me." Chirped Ciela.

"Don't forget me." Added Leaf.

Neri added, "I'm right beside you guys."

Link smiled, letting his fears slip away, "Let's show Bellum who's boss."

* * *

As they approached the door to the final chamber, a great rumble shook the ground. Link nearly lost Hus footing as the floor trembled. Debris crashed around them; a large rock crushed the bridge behind them.

"No going back now." The boy muttered under his breath.

Linebeck gave his son an encouraging look as they made their way up the giant staircase. After the long trek, they found themselves in a giant room. A platform sat in the middle with a pool of oozing purple liquid. Across from each other sat two spiraling staircases that worked their way up a few levels. Withered drapes hung from the levels that sat above them. There was nothing in this room besides them, and it left the two Hylians uneasy. Just as they were about to consider leaving, the door slid shut behind them. The ground shook like it did earlier, causing the young hero to once again loose his balance. As quickly as the ground started shaking, it immediately ceased.

Link gulped as the monster known as Bellum floated downwards from the upper platform, its tendrils twisting as it moved. It swiped at the two males before diving into the eerie purple pool of water. Link gripped the Phantom Blade in his hand as Linebeck pulled out the grappling hook. The sailor swung the grappling hook and latched onto the phantom. With a quick tug the sailor tugged the monstrous squid towards him. The second the monster was close enough, Link brought the sword down with a heavy blow. Bellum cried out in pain.

The monster shook the grappling hook off him and dove into the waters below. The duo stepped back in anticipation of an attack. But an attack didn't come, instead the monster propelled itself from the water and latched onto the pillars on the floor above. Linebeck and Link split up, taking to the two opposite sides of the first platform. Both males rushed up the stairs as fast as their legs could carry them. Link was beat by his father who was already working on shooting the eyes on Bellum's tentacles with the bow and arrow. A wild tendril came down and smacked Link, causing him to nearly roll off the ledges into the abyss below. Before his father could cry out for his son, he rolled over as fast as he could. The green clad hero slashed at the opposing tentacle. By now the last tentacle had been pierced by one of Linebeck's arrows. Bellum cried out and crashed into the water.

Both males took off down the stairs to finish off the beast. They went to repeat the same strategy as before but this time, Bellum was not going to be caught so easily. The phantom allowed himself to be hooked, but before Linebeck could yank the beast towards him, the monster pulled back. Linebeck was tugged into the water before he realized what was going on. The monster wrapped its tentacles around him, trying to squeeze the air from him. And explosion caused the monster to loose his grasp. Linebeck's lungs felt like they were going to burst right before he clambered back up onto the stone floor. His son quickly helped him to his feet as Bellum rocketed up to the last platform.

"Gah... I... hate... squids..." Linebeck panted as he quickly caught his breath.

The run up the the third level was absolute torture. But Linebeck had a feeling that this fight was almost over. Bellum was become more offensive, which meant they were pushing the right buttons and getting closer to the final blow. Linebeck leaped over a fast swinging tendril. The three fairies were flying around the tentacles, trying to distract Bellum as Link and Linebeck attacked the monsters with their swords. Black liquid dripped and began covering the ground, making it slippery. With another cry of pain, the monster once again dove towards the last level. Linebeck inwardly sighed as he made his way back down the stairs. But he thought about what this fight would have been like if it was just his son fighting. He shook his head at the thought.

Bellum began swirling around the bottom platform, as if eyeing its prey. The second Link stepped off the stairs, the room shook again, causing the staircases to crumble into the abyss. Bellum charged towards Link, but Linebeck called out, trying to distract the beast. He reached for the grappling hook, only to remember that it was still attached to Bellum. The phantom turned its attention towards him and charged at him. The sailor dove down at the last minute and grabbed a hold of the rope. He was tugged along as he struggled to his feet.

"Link! Get him!" He yelled as he struggled to hold back the monster.

Link ran forward as fast as he could and brought the blade down into the monster. Bellum wailed out in an ear piercing scream as a large pool of black liquid dripped down from the where the blade pierced the beast. It tried to fly upwards as the grappling hook lost its grip. The as the purple pool of water turned black, the Bellum crashed into the water, coating everyone in the horrible substance. A second wave of the disgusting liquid coated them as an explosion erupted from beneath the water.

Linebeck turned towards his weary son, "Well, it looks like we did it."

The moment the words left his mouth the ground began to shake. Linebeck felt his heart stop as bits of the building crashed around them. He grabbed a hold of his son, and not a moment too soon. A large piece of stone crashed down where he was moments before.

"The exit's still blocked! How do we get out?" Ciela cried as more of the temple crashed around them.

Linebeck closed his eyes, pulled Link into his arms and held him tight as the floor above came crashing down.


	32. The Shifting Tide

**Thank you to savannahamminga for reviewing. So will this be the second to last chapter, or just the end of the Phantom Hourglass storyline? Which do you want? Two sequels, or this to go on and have the sequel be in this story with Wind Waker being its own story? I also have a poll up for this.**

His eyes were closed tight, with Link held tight in his arms. He squeezed his son tighter as they heard the rubble fall around them. A second later a whooshing sound filled his ears. Before he knew it they were suspended in the air. Linebeck opened his eyes and saw himself floating above the cargo hold of his ship. An instant later he crashed into the floor with Link landing on top of him. The wind was knocked out of him and he struggled to sit up.

Linebeck's green eyes looked around and he saw Jolene and Oshus standing over by the petrified Tetra. The old man was holding up his staff as a faint blue light seemed to die.

"Grandpa! Did you get us out of there?" Asked Ciela as she flew up to the old man.

"I did, although it wasn't as accurate as I had wanted it. But none the less, you are safe now." Oshus explained.

"And not a moment too soon. Thank you." Added Linebeck said as he and Link stood up.

"You are very welcome. And I would like to thank you for destroying Bellum. I now have the power to return Tetra to her natural state." the old man said as his eyes twinkled.

He raised up his staff and closed his eyes in concentration. A light blue glow began to emit from the young girl. White sparkles danced off of her and flew away into nothing. Slowly Tetra regained her color. With one last bright burst of light, the young pirate stood as if nothing had happened. The first thing Tetra did was pull Link into a big hug. Link squeezed his friend back as he returned the hug.

"Thank you Link. I knew you'd find me." Tetra said before pulling away from the hug. She brushed a strand of blonde hair behind her ear as she continued, "Ever since I got on the Ghost Ship, it felt like a dream. I could see you and what you had to go through, what you all had to go through. Thank you all so much."

"I'm just glad that everything Bellum did is now fixed." Linebeck said with a content sigh.

"Me too." Link said.

He had a slightly dream like look on his face. Linebeck smiled - young love was such a cute thing. But the cute moment was cut short when a purple and black hole opened up in the ceiling. A pair of tentacles reached down, snatching up Oshus in one quick motion.

"Grandpa!" Ciela shouted.

Link and Linebeck turned towards each other in shock. Tetra and Jolene looked between the two males in confusion, not comprehending what happened. Without another second of hesitation they took off up the stairs.

"I thought we killed Bellum!" Yelled Linebeck as he took the stairs two at a time.

Link yelled back, "I thought we did too!"

"That horrid monster tricked us!" Cried Ciela.

"It doesn't matter now. What matters is getting Oshus back and destroying Bellum once and for all." Linebeck stated as he rushed to turn the engine on.

"Jolene! Untie the boat! Link and Tetra, ready the cannons! Sparkles, Leaf, Neri, keep an eye out for Bellum and Oshus!" Linebeck ordered as the engine purred to life.

It wasn't long before they had caught up to the monster. Bellum was quickly making its way to the Ghost Ship, that was not too far off the coast of the island. The monster still had Oshus as it dove into the side of the ship. Only a few seconds later, the ship began to change. Purple masses with glaring yellow eyes formed on the side of the ship as a deep purple fog surrounded it.

"Fire at those strange blobs Link!" Tetra cried out as she scanned the ship for signs of weakness.

The ship began firing strange bolts of yellow energy the closer they drew near. Jolene turned towards Linebeck, with a look of determination on her face.

"Turn she ship broadside and keep firing!" Jolene ordered.

Link shouted as he readied the cannon, "Already on that!"

"There are too many captains on my ship!" Linebeck yelled out as he turned the ship broadside.

"Quiet!" Jolene and Tetra yelled out at the same time.

They both flashed each other smiles before preparing the cannon. They kept firing at the ship until all the masses on the ship disappeared. As the last purple spot was destroyed, the ship began to sink. Linebeck brought his boat to the sinking ship. They leaped off in search of Oshus. The second the stepped onto the sinkin ship, Beluum burst through the floor, still holding Oshus. He threw the old man down onto Linebeck's ship. The monster than rammed itself into the mast of his ship. Linebeck leaped to one side of the falling mast as everyone else leaped to the left. Linebeck cringed as he heard a loud crash. He turned his head to see his own ship sinking into the ocean.

"Grandpa!" Ciela cried out, her voice cracked as she became distraught.

Seconds later Bellum dived down, grabbing Link, Tetra and Jolene in its tentacles. The Phantom Blade slipped from Link's hand as he was snatched up. Acting quickly, Linebeck grabbed for the sword. The sailor swiped the Phantom Blade at free floating tentacle. A black substance coated the blade and tickled down onto the driftwood. Bellum cried out in an ear piercing roar. The squid like monster threw his captives down before collapsing. Link seemed to be out cold the moment his head hit the wood. Tetra and Jolene went flying to a further piece of the wreckage.

"Link! Wake up! Link" Ciela cried out as the boy lay unconscious.

The sailor rolled out of the way as a flurry of tentacles whipped at him. Using the sword, he swiped at the barrage of tentacles. Black blood dripped onto the surface of the wood as the blade made contact with the monster. Bellum's roars of pain brought the young hero back to his senses. Linebeck's green eyes flicked over to his son as he saw him wobbly stand up. Taking this momentary distracting to his advantage, the squid wrapped his tentacles around the sailor. In a last ditch effort, Linebeck flung the sword to his son, praying he'd catch it.

He let a smile of victory flash across his face as Link grabbed the sword with one hand. The smile vanished in an instant as the tentacles wrapped themselves tighter around him. Purple smoke enveloped Linebeck, as the monster latched onto him. Linebeck could feel his legs go out as he collapsed to his knees. Everything was growing dark and muddled.

* * *

Linebeck shook his head. Goddesses, why did his head hurt so much? It was so hard to see anything - not that there wasn't much to see in the first place. There was just an endless purple and black smoky void that surrounded him. He stood up and rubbed his pounding head. He nearly jumped out of his skin as he heard a voice behind him- his own voice. Only it wasn't his voice- no, not exactly. It was slightly raspy, and seemed to echo, each echo sounding slightly different in pitch.

"Hello Linebeck." the voice spoke as if it were addressing an old friend.

Linebeck turned around. His blood ran icy cold when his emerald eyes saw the voices' owner. The man looked a lot like him. But the longer he looked at his double, the more differences he noticed. First of all was the wardrobe, instead of the blue jacket it was dyed a deep purple, his light blue waist coat was a dark lavender, and his red scarf was a bright yellow. The double's skin was also a shade darker, the bags under his eyes were significantly darker. Instead of green eyes, the copy had eerie yellow eyes that seemed to eat into his soul. Dark, smoky tendrils wafted behind his back. A wicked grin worked its way across the double's face. Needless to say, this was the most disturbing and unsettling thing Linebeck had ever laid his eyes on.

"You know Linebeck, trying to kill me wasn't a very nice thing to do." his copy's voice sounded chipper.

Linebeck took a step backward, "W-w-what's..."

"What's going on? What am I?" the doppelganger said as he cocked his head, "It's quite simple really. I'm Bellum. And I'm getting payback for you nearly killing me."

"I don't understand." Linebeck grabbed at his head, which was now pounding even worse than before. "Goddesses, my head."

Bellum shook his head and looked like he was talking down to a small child, "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Poor Linebeck. Of course you don't understand. We are actually in your head right now. I'm delving into your mind, uncovering all your secrets, looking at every last memory to help me get the upper hand. I am in control over your body, and there's nothing you can do about it. Why don't you see what's going on.

Bellum flicked his hand and a window appeared. Linebeck stared up at the window in utter horror. It was a strange out of body experience. He could see himself fighting his son. The look of fear his son was giving him broke his heart. He could hear Link pleading with him, trying to get through, but Linebeck stood there helpless as he saw himself send a wicked punch to his unarmed son.

Linebeck took a step backwards in the smoky abyss. Rage was building inside the sailor. He rushed at the doppelganger and swung at him as hard as he could.

* * *

"He may have taught you everything you know about hand to hand fighting," Bellumbeck sneered as he grabbed Link's arm, "But he didn't teach you everything he knows."

His possessed father wrapped a leg around Link's sending the boy to the ground. Line tried to roll over but the older man was too quick. Bellumbeck pinned Link to the rickety piece of driftwood. The young hero felt a shiver run down his spine as a wicked smile worked its way across his father's face. His eyes, that were normally a wonderful shade of green, were now a deep purple. This wasn't his father, but maybe he could still hear him. A strong hand suddenly clamped down on Link's left shoulder and fingers began to dig into him.

"Dad." Link pleaded as he looked up at his possessed father, "I know you're in there." His voice trembled as he tried to fight his fear.

The older man laughed, "Oh, he's here alright. He's watching _every_ minute of this." His voice turned mawkish, "Oh, now isn't this sweet. He really does love you. And he's fighting _so hard to get back in control._ The poor fool. Hmph. That will make this so much more _satisfying_."

With that his grip tightened on Link's shoulder. The boy let out a whimper of were welling up in his eyes. Then, with a sick an audible pop, Bellumbeck tore Link's shoulder from its socket. Link's screams of utter agony pierced the stormy sky. Bellumbeck's smile twisted even further as he manipulated the injured arm. Tears gushed from the hero's face as the pain increased. The boy's screams melted with sobs that wracked his body. His legs furiously kicked the older man on top of him as he tried to escape his father's grasp.

* * *

The sound of his son in total agony by his own hand made Linebeck sink to his knees. Tears were splashed down into the void as he clutched at his head, trying to block out Link's tortured screams.

"Please. Stop." He sobbed as he looked up at the monster, "Leave him out of this."

Bellum's eyes narrowed as his grin grew wider, "Oh no. I can't do that. Don't you remember, he and I have been doing this for centuries. Chasing each other in an never ending circle. Only this time, I will be the one who lives."

The doppelganger stepped over and knelt down beside him, his voice had suddenly changed into a quiet whisper, "I can't wait for you to hold your son's lifeless body in your arms."

Linebeck leaped to his feet and tackled Bellum. He slammed him down into the endless void. The sailor let out a never ending barrage of punches. No one talked that way about his son. No one threatened his son. No one hurt his son and got away with it.

* * *

Link could feel his throat grow raw as his screams of torment grew louder. His screams were suddenly cut off when he felt a strong hand grasp around his throat. Stars danced in his darkening vision as he felt his air supply get cut off. Between the stars he could see the purple eyes fade to green. Link felt the air come back to him as Bellumbeck, or maybe Linebeck, threw himself off the young boy. He grabbed at his head, looking totally distraught as tears welled up in his eyes.

"Oh Goddesses Link. I-I-I'm so sorry." Linebeck sobbed seeing the damage he had done, "I'm so sor-"

Linebeck tensed up and clutched his head. A second later that familiar creepy smile worked it's way across his lips as his father's eyes returned to that shade pf purple. Out of nowhere a sword came to life out of freshly conjured purple smoke. Bellumbeck lunged at the child with his blade. Link rolled out of the way just in time, as the blade took a chunk of the driftwood where his head had been moments before. Link hissed in pain as he rolled over on his injured shoulder. He grabbed the fallen sword with his left and and pointed it at his possessed father. Bellumbeck sneered as he summoned a big cloud of purple smoke. The possessed man was enveloped by the smoke and was covered in armor as it dissipated.

"Link. I'm sorry I missed out on so much of your life." With every word he fought for more control over the sword, "But I'm glad I got to be in it again," His voice was strained as he fought back the monster, "even if it was only for a little bit. If I hurt you... any more than this... I won't be able to forgive myself. I love you too much. I'm sorry Link."

Linebeck tightly clutched the Bellum sword in his hands and plunged the sword into him.


	33. Parting Words

**Thank you so much to** **savannahamminga for reviewing. Moonlight Raven Grave, you've been such a big help with this story. Thank you first mate!  
**

One second the sword was about to end his life, the next second, Linebeck found himself on his knees. He was alive, or at least that's what he hoped. His emerald eyes blinked in disbelief. What on Din's green earth happened? The sky had cleared up, and gone back to its beautiful blue self. Linebeck felt a warm embrace around him. He looked down and saw Link latch onto him.

"Why would you do that?" Link asked, his green eyes were fighting back tears as he gripped onto his father tighter.

"Linebeck! You idiot! Why?" Ciela cried out.

Jolene added, "You had us worried!"

Linebeck hugged his son tightly as he spoke, "I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I hurt you anymore. And if taking my own life meant stopping Bellum, I was going to do it without hesitation. Speaking of which, how _did_ you stop him?"

"It was because of Ciela." explained Link.

"When you were about to sacrifice yourself, something in me woke up. I realized my true power. Somehow I was able to stop time. Link was then able to destroy Bellum while you and Bellum were frozen in place. The monster exploded into the Sands of Time and returned to the sword. After that everything went back to normal." Explained Ciela.

"So Bellum's gone for good huh?" asked Linebeck.

Link nodded, "I think so."

Ciela slumped, her voice growing quivering, "But Grandpa..."

Everything grew quiet. The sounds of waves washing up against the wreckage of the ship hung in the air. Sure they had stopped Bellum, but... Oshus was gone. Moments later a strange noise could be heard from beneath the surface of the water. The Phantom Blade began glowing a bright yellow. Gold bolts of lightning and sparkles emanated from the sword. One giant bolt flew straight up into the sky and exploded. Tiny sparkles rained down into the ocean. They had barely settled into the water before a rumbling shook the driftwood.

The ocean opened up and a giant alabaster whale breached the surface, ocean water cascaded rushed over them as the whale splashed back down, effectively soaking the Hylains on the drift wood. The whale resurfaced they heard a familiar voice.

"Link, Linebeck, Ciela, Jolene, and Tetra, I have returned to my true form. And for that, I thank you." Oshus' voice said.

Linebeck's eyebrows rose and his jaw dropped, "Huh. Is that really you? I never would have guessed that that was what you really looked like."

"Had you not have defeated Bellum, I would have been bound to my human form. The ocean would have fallen into desolation. Thank you for saving this realm. The Sand of Hours has returned peace to the regions. The Ghost Ship will not longer haunt any of the split worlds." As the Ocean King spoke, a fog began to appear around them.

"The time for you to return to your realm draws near. Jolene, do you wish to go back with them?" Oshus asked.

Jolene looked over at Linebeck and a smile curled up on her lips, "I would like that."

Oshus seemed to nod, "Then the time draws near to say our goodbyes. Your courage and legacy will never be forgotten."

The three fairies flew up to the Hylians.

"We're gonna miss you guys." Leaf said quietly.

Neri also added, "It was a lot of fun traveling with you. I won't ever forget it."

Ciela's voice sounded the most bittersweet, "We've been through so much together. It's really hard to say goodbye, but we have to. We belong here, with the Ocean King. I was glad to have met you guys. Who knows, maybe our paths will cross again someday."

"That would be nice." Link's words were quiet.

"Take care of yourself Sparkles. I'm going to miss giving you a hard time about everything." Linebeck added.

Ciela laughed, "Yeah. It's going to be quiet without your constant smart Alec comments."

The fog grew even thicker, and became almost impossible to see beyond a few inches.

"Goodbye guys. And thank you." Ciela's words faded out as the fog consumed them completely.

Linebeck was sitting on the wreckage of the Ghost Ship, holding on to his son as the fog covered everything in sight. A while vale covered him for what seemed like minutes. After what felt like ages, the whiteness faded. Linebeck found himself laying on his back, his eyes were closed. The sound of seagulls and lapping water against wood brought him out of his dream like state. His emerald eyes opened and found himself staring up at the blue sky of his own world.

* * *

 **So this is the end of my longest story I have ever written. this is the best way I could think of ending it while trying to leave the ending open for the split timeline. You can check out the first chapters of the sequels right now to make up for such a short ending.**

 **It had been a blast writing for you, and I look forward to posting more stories for you guys, so until next time, have a good day.**


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